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【No. 1622】Tenohira Kurū (ﾃﾉﾋﾗｸﾙｰ - Turning a 180)

May 28, 2019 23:39
Tenohira Kurū

YesterdayYesterday, I introduced the Japanese idiom tenohira wo kaesu (手のひらを返す), which means to make a 180-degree turn in attitude or wording.

On the Internet, it is sometimes expressed as tenohira kurū (ﾃﾉﾋﾗｸﾙｰ).

Tenohira (ﾃﾉﾋﾗ/手のひら) means "palm" and kurū (ｸﾙｰ) is an onomatopoeia that represents that something rotates.

Since karsu (返す) means "to turn something over," both literal meanings of tenohira wo kaesu and tenohira kuru are the same.

This slang term is often used with a parenthesis such as "(ﾃﾉﾋﾗｸﾙｰ" at the end of the sentence.
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【No. 1621】Tenohira wo Kaesu (手のひらを返す - Turning a 180)

May 27, 2019 20:10
Tenohira wo Kaesu

I often find people who do an act called tenohira wo kaesu (手のひらを返す).

Since tenohira (手のひら/掌) means "palm" and kaesu (返す) means "to turn something over," the literal meaning of tenohira wo kaesu is "to turn over one's palm."

Actually, this idiom means to make a 180-degree turn in attitude or wording because of some events.

Originally, it was used to mean that something is easy to change, but later, this came to be used to indicate human's behavior.
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【No. 1620】Aiso Warai (愛想笑い - Fake Smile)

May 26, 2019 17:15
Aiso Warai

I am not good at doing aiso warai (愛想笑い).

Aiso warai is a diplomatic smile to get on someone's good side.

Aiso (愛想) is an attitude when dealing with someone or an affable attitude, and warai (笑い) means "laugh" or "smile," so the literal meaning of aiso warai is "an affable smile."

There are various opinions as to whether aiso warai (fake smile) is good or bad for human relationships.

In my opinion, people who have the ability to make aiso warai well can smooth human relations.
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【No. 1619】Laugh Ways of Ha-gyō

May 25, 2019 21:26
Laugh Ways of Ha-gyō

In Japan, many laugh ways are represented by ha-gyō (ハ行).

Ha-gyō (ハ行 - literally means "ha row") contains ha (ハ), hi (ヒ), fu (フ), he (ヘ) and ho (ホ), and you can generate a laugh sound by repeating one of them.

Hahaha (ハハハ) ・・・ A common laugh (for many countries).

Hihihi (ヒヒヒ) ・・・ A laugh in a contemptible tone of voice.

Fufufu (フフフ) ・・・ A creepy laugh or woman's pretty laugh.

Hehehe (ヘヘヘ) ・・・ A embarrassed laugh.

Hohoho (ホホホ) ・・・ A pompous laugh.

In actual conversation, hahaha or ahaha (アハハ) is most commonly used.
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【No. 1617】Hinemosu (ひねもす - Whole Day)

May 24, 2019 20:28
Hinemosu

Yesterday, I introduced the classical Japanese term yo mo sugara (夜もすがら), which means "all through the night."

The antonym of this term is hinemosu (ひねもす).

Hinemosu comes from hi mo sugara (ひもすがら) -- Hi (ひ/日) means "day" and sugara (すがら) means "from start to end."

That is to say, hinemosu and hi mo sugara means "all day" or "whole day."

As well as you can write yo mo sugara in kanji as 終夜 (終 means "end"), you can write hinemosu/hi mo sugara as 終日.

However, note that the common reading of 終日 is shūjitsu.
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【No. 1618】Kokoro Machi (心待ち - Being Eagerly Waiting)

May 24, 2019 21:12
Kokoro Machi

Have you ever been eagerly waiting for something?

To describe such a situation, you can use the Japanese term kokoro machi (心待ち).

Since kokoro (心) means "heart" and mati (待ち) means "to wait," the combination kokoro machi literally means "to wait something heartily."

In actual situations, it is often used as kokoro machi ni suru (心待ちにする) by combining with suru (する - "do").

[Example] Kanojo to au no wo kokoro machi ni suru (彼女と会うのを心待ちにする - "I look forward to meeting my girlfriend").
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【No. 1616】Yo mo Sugara (夜もすがら - Through the Night)

May 22, 2019 22:05
Yo mo Sugara

Today I would like to introduce one of the classical Japanese terms that has a beautiful sound, yo mo sugara (夜もすがら).

Yo (夜) is a noun that means "night," and sugara (すがら) is a suffix that means "from start to end."

That is to say, yo mo sugara means "all through the night" or "overnight."

You can also write this term in kanji as 終夜 by using 終, which means "end."

[Example] Yo mo sugara benkyō shita (夜もすがら勉強した - "I studied all through the night").
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【No. 1615】Sobazue wo Kū (側杖を食う - Becoming Embroiled)

May 21, 2019 19:36
Sobazue wo Kū

Yesterday, I introduced the Japanese word tobacchiri (とばっちり), which means to become embroiled in something.

There is another phrase that has a similar meaning to tobacchiri -- it is sobazue wo kū (側杖を食う).

Soba (側) means "nearby" and zue/tsue (杖) means "cane."

In addition, kū (食う) usually means "to eat," but here it means that you receive/incur something, so the literal meaning of sobazue wo kū is "to receive/incur a nearby cane."

This phrase implies that if you are near people who are fighting using a cane, you will be hit wit the cane.
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【No. 1614】Tobacchiri (とばっちり - By-Blow)

May 20, 2019 14:05
Tobacchiri

Have you ever been involved in an irrelevant accident caused by someone?

Such an event is described as tobacchiri (とばっちり) in Japanese.

This term comes from an old Japanese verb, tobashiru (とばしる), which means that water is splattered or someone is splashed with water.

In fact, tobasshiri also has the meaning of splattered water.

That is to say, this term compares receiving splattered water with involving in an irrelevant accident.

In actual situations, it is used something like tobacchiri wo ukeru (とばっちりを受ける) by combining with ukeru (受ける - "to receive").
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【No. 1613】Zaisu (座椅子 - Legless Chair)

May 19, 2019 19:22
Zaisu

Yesterday, I introduced you to the Japanese word isu (椅子), which means "chair."

Chairs are one of the most common furniture that has been used all over the world since ancient times.

Of course, there have been chairs also in Japan, but Japanese people generally sat on the floor (tatami mat) in their houses, so zaisu (座椅子) was born.

Since za (座) means "sit" and isu (椅子) means "chair," the literal meaning of zaisu is "sitting chair."

Actually, it represents a legless chair only with a backrest (or a backrest and an armrest).
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【No. 1612】Isu (椅子 - Chair)

May 18, 2019 22:35
Isu

Yesterday, I introduced the Japanese koshikake (腰掛け), which means "chair" or "makeshift job."

However, when you want to mean "chair," it is more common to use another word, isu (椅子).

椅 is a kanji that means a thing or wood to lean on, and su (子) is a suffix attached to small things.

It is thought that this comes from the fact that most chairs in the past in Japan (or China) were made of wood.

The chair has a long history -- it is said that the oldest chair in the world is the chair of Queen Hetepheres used in ancient Egypt (about 2500 BC).
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【No. 1611】Koshikake (腰掛け - Chair/Makeshift Job)

May 17, 2019 18:41
Koshikake

People often use koshikake (腰掛け) when getting tired from walking or standing.

Koshi (腰) means "lower back," and kake (掛け) has various meanings, but here it means "to place," so the literal meaning of koshikake is "something for placing one's lower back."

Of course, it literally means the furniture for placing one's lower back and resting -- that is, it is a chair.

On the other hand, it can also mean that someone temporarily assumes a position only until getting their desired position or job.

The latter meaning is often used for female employees who intend to quit the job and become housewives when getting married.
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【No. 1610】Koshi ga Hikui (腰が低い - Humble)

May 16, 2019 10:32
Koshi ga Hikui

I am sometimes told koshi ga hikui (腰が低い).

Since koshi (腰) means "low back" or "waist" and hikui (低い) means "low," the literal meaning of koshi ga hikui is "one's low back is low."

In actual conversation, this phrase is used to mean that someone is humble or modest.

You can also say teishisei (低姿勢), by combining tei (低 - "low") and shisei (姿勢 - "posture").

Incidentally, if you say koshi ga takai (腰が高い) by using takai (高い - "high") instead of hikui, you can mean that someone is arrogant, but this phrase is not often used.
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【No. 1609】Kenka-goshi and Yowa-goshi (喧嘩腰と弱腰 - Defiant Attitude and Bearish Attitude)

May 15, 2019 23:27
Kengka-goshi and Yowa-goshi

In my post yesterday, I used the Japanese term kenka-goshi (喧嘩腰), which means an attitude that you are about to start a fight/quarrel.

Since kenka means "fight/quarrel" and goshi/koshi (腰) means "waist," the literal meaning of kenkagoshi is "a fight waist."

This is because the waist portion looks characteristics when getting ready for a fight.

Contrary to kenka-goshi, there is another term yowa-gosi (弱腰), which means a bearish or negative attitude.

Since yowa (弱) means "weak," the literal meaning of yowa-goshi is "a weak waist."
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【No. 1608】Uri Kotoba ni Kai Kotoba (売り言葉に買い言葉 - Tit for Tat)

May 14, 2019 22:42
Uri Kotoba ni Kai Kotoba

Have you ever exchanged harsh words with someone?

Such an act is called uri kotoba ni kai kotoba (売り言葉に買い言葉) in Japanese.

Since uri (売り) means "selling," kotoba (言葉) means "word," and kai (買い) means "buying," the literal meaning of this phrase is "selling words and buying words."

In Japanese, to pick a quarrel/fight is expressed kenka wo uru (喧嘩を売る - literally means "to sell a quarrel/fight"), and to take up the quarrel/fight is expressed as kenka wo kau (喧嘩を買う - literally means "to buy a quarrel/fight").

That is to say, uri kotoba (売り言葉) means "words that cause a fight," and kai kotoba (買い言葉) means "words that take up a fight."

This phrase can be translated as "tit for tat" in English.
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【No. 1607】Kichin-to (きちんと - Neatly)

May 13, 2019 23:35
Kichin-to

Japanese parents may say kichin-to shinasai (きちんとしなさい) when scolding their children.

Kichin-to (きちんと) is an adverb that means "neatly" or "orderly," and sinasai (しなさい) is an imperative form of suru (する - "do").

There are several theories about the etymology of kichin (きちん) -- one theory says that it comes from kichōmen (几帳面- "well-organized"), and another theory says that it comes from a Chinese term.

[Example] Kichin-to fuku wo tatamu (きちんと服を畳む - "I neatly fold my clothes.")
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【No. 1606】Ateji (当て字 - Phonetic Equivalent) Part 2

May 12, 2019 22:11
Ateji Part 2

Yesterday, I introduced two meanings of ateji (当て字).

I would like to show you examples of them.

[Ateji based only on the readings of kanji]

・目茶苦茶（めちゃくちゃ - "unreasonable"）
(目 means "eye," 茶 means "tea," and 苦 means "bitter.")

・出鱈目（でたらめ - "incoherent"）
(出 means "come out," 鱈 means "Pacific cod," and 目 means "eye.")

・仏蘭西（フランス - "France"）
(仏 means "Buddha," 蘭 means "orchid," and 西 means "west.")

[Ateji based only on the meanings of kanji]

・紅葉（もみじ - "autumn color"）
(紅 means "red" and 葉 means "leaf.")

・紫水晶（アメジスト - "amethyst"）
(紫 means "purple" and 水晶 means "crystal.")
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【No. 1605】Ateji (当て字 - Phonetic Equivalent) Part 1

May 11, 2019 18:13
Ateji Part 1

I used the Japanese word ateji (当て字) several times in my previous posts.

When looking up it in a dictionary, it is translated as "phonetic equivalent," but I think that the nuance is a little incorrect.

Since ate (当て) means "to assign" and ji (字) means "character," the literal meaning of ateji is "assigned characters."

In actual situations, ateji has two different meanings.

One is to assign kanji characters to foreign or Japanese terms based on only the readings, ignoring the actual meaning of the kanji.

The other is to assign kanji characters based on only the meanings, ignoring the readings of the kanji.

To be continued.
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【No. 1604】Shufu and Shufu (主婦と主夫 - Homemaker)

May 10, 2019 16:12
Shufu and Shufu

A married woman who manages her family's home and caring for her children is called shufu (主婦 - "housewife") in Japanese.

Since shu (主) means "principal" and fu (婦) means "lady," the literal meaning of shufu (主婦) is "principal lady."

On the other hand, these days men who manage his family's home are increasing, so another term shufu (主夫 - "househusband") has come to be used.

Since fu (夫) means "husband," the literal meaning of shufu (主夫) is "principal husband."

Note that both 主婦 and 主夫 have the same pronunciation.
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【No. 1603】Gomakasu (ごまかす - Covering up) Part 2

May 9, 2019 20:16
Gomakasu Part 2

Yesterday, I introduced the term gomakasu (ごまかす), which means to cover up something or tell a lie, and showed you one of two major theories about its etymology.

Another theory says that it comes from gomagyō (護摩行), which is a training of Shingon-shū (真言宗 - "Shingon Buddhism").

Goma (護摩) is a kind of rituals that burns offerings or wood, and gyō (行) means "training."

After doing gomagyō, ashes remain.

It is said that some people sold these ashes (or just other ashes) as ashes of gomagyō performed by Kōbō-Daishi (弘法大師) who founded Shingon-shū.

Because of this, such an act of deceiving someone came to be called gomakasu, by adding the prefix kasu (かす).