CHOKKI-RI ちょっきり
Meanings
Describes cutting a thin object such as a branch or hair cleanly with one quick movement of scissors; it can also evoke the crisp snipping sound.
Examples
Snip the branch off with the long-handled pruning shears.
高枝切りばさみで、枝をちょっきり切り落とす。
At a sumo wrestler’s retirement hair-cutting ceremony, many people each take one quick snip at his topknot.
力士は断髪式で、大勢の人からまげにちょっきりハサミを入れてもらう。
Dogmatic Opinion
Because CHOKI immediately evokes scissors in Japanese, I imagine the blades moving once, quickly, through something thin such as a branch or a lock of hair.
The action is small, crisp, and complete: one snip.
Proximate Expression
Snipping
関連表現
For Japanese Learners
Snip, snip off, or cut off with one quick snip is very close. This page’s CHOKKI-RI is about scissors and a crisp single cut; it should not be confused with expressions meaning “exactly” in quantity or time.
