Q. What is the difference between "goro" and "gurai"?
A. Both "goro （ごろ）" and "gurai （ぐらい）" are used to express approximation. However, "goro" is only used for a specific point in time to mean "approximately."
| Sanji goro uchi ni kaerimasu. 三時ごろうちに帰ります。 |
I will come home around three o'clock. |
| Rainen no sangatsu goro nihon ni ikimasu. 来年の三月ごろ日本に行きます。 |
I am going to Japan around March next year. |
"Gurai （ぐらい）" is used for an approximate time period or quantity.
| Ichi-jikan gurai machimashita. 一時間ぐらい待ちました。 |
I waited for about an hour. |
| Eki made go-fun gurai desu. 駅まで五分ぐらいです。 |
It takes about five minutes to get to the station. |
| Kono kutsu wa nisen en gurai deshita. この靴は二千円ぐらいでした。 |
These shoes were about 2,000 yen. |
| Hon ga gojussatsu gurai arimasu. 本が五十冊ぐらいあります。 |
There are about 50 books. |
| Ano ko wa go-sai gurai deshou. あの子は五歳ぐらいでしょう。 |
That child is probably about five years old. |
"Gurai （ぐらい）" can be replaced with "hodo （ほど）" or "yaku （約）," though "yaku" comes before the quantity unlike others.
| Sanjuupun hodo hirune o shimashita. 三十分ほど昼寝をしました。 |
I had a nap for about 30 minutes. |
| Yaku gosen-nin no kanshuu desu. 約五千人の観衆です。 |
There are about 5,000 in the audience. |
