Categories
- Japanese (824)
- Kotowaza (413)
- Yojijukugo (409)
- Long Fiction (6)
- Meta (11)
- Nonfiction (74)
- Poetry (13)
- Short Fiction (20)
- Uncategorized (13)
- World-Building (176)
- Miscellaneous (24)
- Rules (127)
- Setting (69)
- Japanese (824)
Archives
-
Recent Posts
Category Archives: Japanese
:|
8^| 真一文字ma.ichi.mon.ji Literally: true – one – sentence – character Alternately: Straight as an arrow; as the crow flies; as straight as the written character for the number one, which is just a straight line. By extension; when a person’s … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Yojijukugo
Tagged 真, flat mouth, intense focus, straight line, written characters, 一文字
Leave a comment
Every body has some body
So rock your body right 身は身で通る裸ん坊(Mi wa mi de tooru hadakanbou;“The body, as the body, passes through (life) naked””) Definition: Everybody has their own strengths and weaknesses, quirks and skills, station in life, and so on – but we all … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Kotowaza
Tagged embodied living, everybody, 裸ん坊, 身は身, fate, naked as the day you were born, social position, 何とかして
1 Comment
A man with a heart of… field
野心満満ya.shin.man.man Literally: field – heart – full – full Alternately: Bursting at the seams with (possibly secret) hopes and desires of grand scope. Burning with ambition. Notes: This is a compound of compounds. 野心 on its own can be used … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Yojijukugo
Tagged ambitious, 野心, 長生殿, 长生殿, hungry, irasutoya, overweening, The Palace of Eternal Life, The Palace of Eternal Youth, 勃々, 勃勃, 満々, 満満
Leave a comment
Smaller than an apple, at least
目の上の瘤(Me no ue no kobu;“A lump over the eye”) Definition: An eyesore; metaphorically, a person you don’t want to meet, usually because they always seem to get in your way and cause problems. Especially used for someone of higher social … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Kotowaza
Tagged annoyance, こぶ, めざわり, 瘤, 目障り, eyesore, Iroha karuta, nemesis, rival, thorn in the side
Leave a comment
Million-yard stare
Look on my Works, ye Mighty 空空漠漠kuu.kuu.baku.baku Literally: sky / empty – sky / empty – desert / wide – desert / wide Alternately: Vast; indefinitely wide – and empty. Alternately, vague; hazy; ill-defined. When applied to a person, it … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Yojijukugo
Tagged Buddhism, 空漠, faraway, featureless waste, Ozymandias, vague, wasteland
Leave a comment
404 Ghost not found
(According to my file, this is the 404th kotowaza post!) 幽霊の正体見たり枯れ尾花(Yuurei no shoutai mitari kareobana;“[I] saw the ghost’s true form: dry pampas grass”) Definition: When something seems frightening at first but turns out to be benign after closer inspection – … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Kotowaza
Tagged book burning, dried grass, 薄, 鶉衣, fear, ghosts, imagination versus reality, jumping at shadows, pampas grass, paranoia, 化物の正体, 幽霊, 枯れ尾花, 横井也有
Leave a comment
A cure for what ails ya!
(Not universally applicable, unfortunately.) 応病与薬ou.byou.yo.yaku Literally: answer – disease – give – medicine Alternately: Just what it says on the tin: giving someone medicine appropriate to the illness they are suffering from at the time. By extension, teaching people the … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Yojijukugo
Tagged Buddhism, disease and treatment, education, 雑阿含経, medicine, Saṃyukta Āgama, 応病, 与薬
Leave a comment
On covering your butt
Both literally and metaphorically… not that a fundoshi actually covers much of the butt…. 義理と褌欠かされぬ(Giri to fundoshi kakasarenu;“Underwear and courtesy cannot be left lacking”) Definition: In the old days, it was acceptable for men doing hard labor to strip down … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Kotowaza
Tagged ふんどし, butts, common courtesy, 義理, 褌, 諺苑, 譬喩尽, Iroha karuta, obligation, public decency, underwear
Leave a comment
All roads lead to Home
異路同帰i.ro.dou.ki Literally: different – road – same – go home / arrive at / result in Alternately: “Different path, same destination.” When differing methodologies produce the same end result. Notes: Synonyms include 殊塗同帰 (shuto douki), in which 殊 (shu, “exceptional”) … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Yojijukugo
Tagged 異路, destination, ends vs means, indy art, Many Roads Home, methodology, multiple paths, 同帰, 殊塗, 淮南子, 丸伊四角
Leave a comment
Eliza, Eliza
There’s a hole in the bag now; an exceptional hole! 嚢中之錐nou.chuu.no.kiri Literally: bag – inside – [possessive particle] – awl / auger / drill Alternately: A person of exceptional ability will show through even if surrounded by large numbers of … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Yojijukugo
Tagged 穎, exceptionalism, 錐, 類, Records of the Grand Historian, standout talent, 史記, 史记, 嚢中
Leave a comment
landofnudotcom 