Te Haccho Kuchi Haccho
Today I would like to talk about the Japanese idiom “te haccho kuchi haccho.”
手八丁口八丁
This idiom describes a person who does something well and has a smart mouth.
今日は「手八丁口八丁」という慣用句を紹介します。
“Te” means “hand”, “kuchi” means “mouth”, and “haccho” means “eight things”, so this idiom literally describes a person who can use eight tools by his/her hands or mouth.
「手八丁口八丁」は、「何かをすることも、話すことも達者な人」を表す言葉です。
Of course, you can use just “te haccho” for a person who does something well, and just “kuchi haccho” for a person who has a smart mouth, respectively.
「手」は “hand”、 「口」は “mouth”、「八丁」は “eight things” を意味し、この慣用句は「手や口で八つの道具を使うことができる」ということが語源になります。
This idiom originally used as a good meaning to praise someone, but recently, it is often used sarcastically for an insincere person who just looks a good worker or a good talker.
何かをすることが達者な人には「手八丁」、話すことが達者な人には「口八丁」と、それぞれ分けて使うこともできます。
