頃(ころ)Around, About

ころ, or ごろ (the colloquial pronunciation) is a word which carries the meaning of 'around', or 'about'. It is utilized in a similar way to くらい, but has a few differences. When ごろ is used, it will need to be attached to the end of a noun, or a noun followed by の.

The main difference between ころ and くらい is that ころ can be (and often is) used to express a broad point in time, while くらい is limited to expressing timeframes that are more specific.

Conversely, ころ will not be used when expressing approximate distances/lengths.

The primary reason for this is that ころ expresses a span of something, while くらい expresses an extent. In this way, ころ could also be translated as 'within the span of (A)', while くらい is closer to 'at the point of (A)'. As an easier way to think about it, if we have a one meter ruler, ころ could express anywhere between 1 to 100 centimeters (the span), but くらい can only express somewhere between 90 and 100 centimeters (the extent).

Just like with English, if the 'time' expressed is very specific, then either くらい or ころ could be used naturally. This is due to the 'span', and the 'extent' already being something that is a 'precise point' in these cases.

Caution

The kanji form of 頃(ころ) is also very common, so it is worth learning as soon as possible, to save any confusion while reading.