Category Archives: Kotowaza

We have to try!

Posted on April 1, 2018 by Confanity

Puffer-fish lined up (Boy, if you got that one, massive points. You win.) (出ん出らりゅうば出て来るばってん 出ん出られんけん出て来んけん 来ん来られんけん来られられんけん 来ん来ん; “If it’s the case that if it tries to come out then it will be able to come, then it will come out, … Continue reading →

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Yinstring and Yangtwine

Posted on March 25, 2018 by Confanity

禍福は糾える縄の如し (Kafuku wa azanaeru nawa no gotoshi; “Good and ill fortune are entwined like (the strands of) a rope”) Definition: Good luck and bad luck are intimately and inextricably connected; you can’t have only one or the other. Every cloud … Continue reading →

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But what comes from a lyre?

Posted on March 18, 2018 by Confanity

In Rome, a big fire? 噓つきは泥棒の始まり (Usotsuki wa dorobou no hajimari; “A liar is the beginning of a thief”) Definition: Someone who becomes capable of lying glibly will also be able to calmly steal or rob. Lies are the first … Continue reading →

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Cheap is dear, but deer don’t cheep

Posted on March 11, 2018 by Confanity

For those counting, this is the 200th kotowaza! To celebrate, we’re… doing nothing special! 安物買いの銭失い (Yasumonogai no zeniushinai; “Losing money by buying cheap”) Definition: Especially cheap things tend to be poorly made; they fail to perform their functions properly, or … Continue reading →

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If I have seen further it is because a dwarf was standing on my shoulders

Posted on March 4, 2018 by Confanity

Like so. 負うた子に教えられて浅瀬を渡る (Outa ko ni oshierarete asase wo wataru; “Crossing shallows with guidance from the child you carry”) Definition: Sometimes there are things you can learn from people who are younger and less experienced. “Out of the mouths of … Continue reading →

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All come from Yodo, and to Yodo all return

Posted on February 25, 2018 by Confanity

No, not “Yoda” 遅牛も淀早牛も淀 (Osoushi mo yodo hayaushi mo yodo; “Both the slow ox and the fast ox (arrive at) Yodo”) Definition: Although there are definitely differences in being early versus late, or slow versus quick, when the end result … Continue reading →

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Someone who can see through the shell game

Posted on February 19, 2018 by Confanity

亀の甲より年の劫 (Kame no kou yori toshi no kou; “Better the wisdom of years than a tortoise-shell”) Definition: Pun time! Japanese is actually full of puns, and here’s one that made it into a kotowaza. The phrase itself means that one … Continue reading →

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Soryaa, ii kamo?

Posted on February 11, 2018 by Confanity

鴨が葱を背負って来る (Kamo ga negi wo shotte kuru; “A duck comes bearing a green onion on its back”) Definition: A confluence of almost-too-good-to-be-true convenience. Often used when somebody you’d been planning to use or con comes to you with a get-rich-quick … Continue reading →

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Der Dreigroschenvorteil

Posted on February 4, 2018 by Confanity

早起きは三文の徳 (Hayaoki wa sanmon no toku; “Rising early is a three-penny profit”) Definition: Waking up early in the morning instead of sleeping in leads to better health and a variety of other benefits. “Early to bed and early to rise … Continue reading →

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Lucy in the pie

Posted on January 29, 2018 by Confanity

…with a 3D rendering of diamonds 絵に描いた餅 (E ni kaita mochi; “A rice cake drawn in a picture”) Definition: Something appealing that doesn’t actually do any good. Pie in the sky, to substitute a Western food. No matter how well-drawn … Continue reading →

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