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【No. 1582】Hachiku no Ikioi (破竹の勢い - Tremendous Momentum)

Apr 18, 2019 10:54
Hachiku no Ikioi

When something has an intense momentum and it can't be stopped, you can describe that using the Japanese idiom hachiku no ikioi (破竹の勢い).

Ha (破) means "to break," chiku (竹) means "bamboo," and ikioi (勢い) means "momentum," so the literal meaning of hachiku no ikioi is "a momentum of breaking a bamboo."

If you try to divide a bamboo into two with a knife, it will break swiftly from the top to the bottom.

Because of this, hachiku (破竹 - "breaking a bamboo") came to mean "an intense momentum that can't be stopped."
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【No. 1581】Oha-konban-chiwa (おはこんばんちは - Good Morning/Afternoon/Evening)

Apr 17, 2019 10:50
Oha-konban-chiwa

Yesterday, I introduced the term shigo (死語), which means "dead language" or "dead word."

When I looked up this term on the Internet, I found the phrase oha-konban-chiwa (おはこんばんちは).

This phrase is the combination of ohayō (おはよう - "good morning"), kon-nichiwa (こんにちは - "good afternoon"), and konbanwa (こんばんは - "good evening") -- this came from the song of the anime, "Dr. Slump (Arale-chan)."

Definitely, people no longer use this phrase as a greeting.

However, since it can be used regardless of time, some Japanese YouTubers use it at the beginning of their videos.
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【No. 1580】Shigo (死語 - Dead Language/Word)

Apr 16, 2019 06:23
Shigo

In my post yesterday, I used the Japanese word shigo (死語).

Since shi (死) means "death/dead" and go (語) means "word/language," the literal meaning of shigo is "dead word" or "dead language."

In linguistics, shigo means a dead language that no one uses, but it is also used to mean a dead word that people rarely use or an antiquated word.

If you want to mean the latter two, you can use haigo (廃語 - literally means "obsolete word"), but I think that shigo is more used than haigo on a daily basis.
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【No. 1579】Shame (写メ - Photo) Part 2

Apr 15, 2019 11:55
Shame (写メ) Part 2

Yesterday, I introduced the slang term shame (写メ), which means to take photos with (or photos taken by) a mobile phone or smartphone.

If you want to use shame as a verb, you can say shame-ru (写メる) by adding the suffix ru (る).

For example, shame-rou (写メろう) means "let's take photos (with our smartphones)."

I often use and hear these terms, shame and shame-ru.

However, among the current young people, it seems that these slang terms are becoming dead words because they do not use e-mails very much.
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【No. 1578】Shame (写メ - Photo) Part 1

Apr 14, 2019 20:07
Shame Part 1

Have you ever heard of the Japanese slang term shame (写メ)?

Shame is short for sha mēru (写メール), which is a combination of sha/shashin (写/写真 - means "photo") and mēru (メール - means "e-mail").

Originally, this term meant to attach a photo taken with a camera-equipped mobile phone to an e-mail.

Later, taking photos with (and photos taken by) a mobile phone or smartphone came to be called shame.

[Example] Shame torou (写メ撮ろう - "Let's take photos (using our smartphones).")
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【No. 1577】Nomikomi ga Hayai (飲み込みが早い - Learning Fast)

Apr 13, 2019 18:56
Nomikomi ga Hayai

Yesterday, I heard a compliment phrase, nomikomi ga hayai (飲み込みが早い).

Nomikomi (飲み込み) means "to swallow something" and hayai (早い) means "fast" or "quick," so the literal meaning of nomikomi ga hayai is "someone swallows something quickly."

Here, nomikomi implies that someone understands things or accepts a situation.

That is to say, this phrase is a compliment used for people who have can understand or learn things quickly -- they are good/quick learners.

On the other hand, people who are slow to catch on things are described as nomikomi ga warui (飲み込みが悪い) by using the word warui (悪い - "bad").
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【No. 1576】Kusshi (屈指 - One of the Best)

Apr 12, 2019 07:41
Kusshi

I introduced yubiori (指折り), which means "to count something" or "one of the best" two days ago, and introduced yubiori kazoeru (指折り数える) to mean the former ("to count something") explicitly yesterday.

If you want to mean the latter ("one of the best") explicitly, you can use the similar term kusshi (屈指).

Since ku (屈) means "to bend something" and shi (指) means "finger," the literal meaning of kusshi is "to bend your fingers."

Note that the meaning of kusshi is "one of the best," and it is not used to mean "to count something."

[Example] Kare wa sekai kusshi no shisanka da (彼は世界屈指の資産家だ - "He is one of the richest people in the world.")
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【No. 1575】Yubiori Kazoeru (指折り数える - Waiting Eagerly)

Apr 11, 2019 10:50
Yubiori Kazoeru

Yesterday, I introduced the term yubiori (指折り), which means "to count something" or "one of the best."

If you want to mean the former explicitly, you can say yubiori kazoeru (指折り数える).

Since yubi (指) means "finger," ori (折り) means "to bend something," and kazoeru (数える) means "to count something," the literal meaning of yubiori kazoeru is "to count something by bending fingers."

In addition, this phrase can imply that you are looking forward to one day and waiting while counting the remaining days.

[Example] Kekkonshiki no hi wo yubiori kazoete matsu (結婚式の日を指折り数えて待つ - "I wait eagerly for the wedding day.")
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【No. 1574】Yubiori (指折り - One of the Best)

Apr 10, 2019 22:42
Yubiori

Human beings sometimes bend their fingers one by one when counting something.

To count something by bending fingers is referred to as yubiori (指折り) or yubi wo oru (指を折る) in Japanese.

Literally, yubi (指) means "finger" and ori/oru (折る) means "to bend something" or "to fold something."

However, this term has another meaning -- it is "one of the best," because you can count the top five on your one hand fingers.

[Example] Kare wa nihon de yubiori no pianisuto da (彼は日本で指折りのピアニストだ - "He is one of the best pianists in Japan").
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【No. 1573】On ni Kiseru/On wo Uru (恩に着せる/恩を売る - Making You Feel Grateful)

Apr 9, 2019 13:53
On ni Kiseru/On wo Uru

Yesterday, I introduced the phrase on wo ada de kaesu (恩を仇で返す), which means to bite the hand that feeds you.

There are other idioms that use on (恩 - "favor"), such as on ni kiseru (恩に着せる) or on wo uru (恩を売る).

Since kiseru (着せる) means "to make/have someone wear something" and uru (売る) means "to sell something," the literal meanings of on ni kiseru and on wo uru are "to make someone wear one's favors" and "to sell one's favors," respectively.

Here, kiseru and uru imply that you force something against someone.

That is to say, these idioms mean to act to force someone to feel one's favors.
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【No. 1572】On wo Ada de Kaesu (恩を仇で返す - Biting the Hand that Feeds One)

Apr 8, 2019 10:40
On wo Ada de Kaesu

Have you ever done harm to someone without a feeling of gratitude, even though he/she took care of you?
(I would like you to say "No.")

Such an action is called on wo ada de kaesu (恩を仇で返す) in Japanese.

On (恩) means "favor," ada (仇) means "harm," and kaesu (返す) means "to return," so the literal meaning of this phrase is "to do harm as a return of favors."

For example, you can use it to describe a scene that a child betrays his/her parents who have cherished the child.
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【No. 1571】Ice Cream and Shaved Ice

Apr 7, 2019 15:17
Ice Cream and Shaved Ice

Yesterday, I talked about kaki gōri (かき氷), which means "shaved ice."

Which do you think is "ice cream" or "shaved ice" colder?

Ice cream is around -7 degrees Celsius, whereas shaved ice is 0 degrees Celsius.

However, I think that many people feel that shaved ice is colder than ice cream.

Since milk fat and air bubbles that are contained in ice cream do not transfer heat well, shaved ice can draw heat away from your mouth faster than ice cream.

It is getting warmer lately, so I would like to eat either one.
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【No. 1570】Kakigōri (かき氷 - Shaved Ice)

Apr 6, 2019 13:56
Kakigōri

Have you ever eaten kakigōri (かき氷)?

Kakigōri is a kind of frozen sweets made from finely shaved or crushed ice flavored with syrup, etc., and is one of the traditional Japanese features of summer.
(Of course, many other countries also have similar traditions.)

Gōri/kōri (氷) means "ice," but there are several theories about the etymology of kaki (かき).

One theory says that it comes from the fact that we used kaketa kōri (欠けた氷 - literally means "chipped ice") to make kakigōri.

In English, it is often translated as "shaved ice."
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【No. 1569】Itaku mo Kayuku mo Nai (痛くも痒くもない - Not Caring at All)

Apr 5, 2019 16:56
Itaku mo Kayuku mo Nai

When you do not feel a thing about someone's action against you, you can express it as itaku mo kayuku mo nai (痛くも痒くもない).

Itai (痛い) means "painful," kayui (痒い) means "itchy," and nai (ない) is a negative term, so the literal meaning of itaku mo kayuku mo nai is "it is neither painful nor itchy."

Of course, this phrase can be used for physical pain/itching, but it is often used when there is no mental influence.

[Example] Kare ni waruguchi wo iwareta ga, itaku mo kayuku mo nai (彼に悪口を言われたが、痛くも痒くもない - "He said nasty things about me, but I do not care at all").
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【No. 1568】Kan Kinou Shougai (肝機能障害 - Hepatic Dysfunction)

Apr 4, 2019 10:15
Kan Kinou Shougai

Yesterday, I received the result of my medical checkup.

Sadly, I was diagnosed with kan kinou shougai (肝機能障害).

Since kan (肝) means "liver," kinou (機能) means "function," and shougai (障害) means "disorder" or "impairment," kan kinou shougai means "liver function impairment" or "hepatic dysfunction."

I need to take an additional examination of the liver to know the details, but I could be a disease of "fatty liver" or "chronic hepatitis."

Today a welcome party will be held, but I have to refrain from drinking alcohol.
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【No. 1567】Tachi Ōjō (立ち往生 - Gridlock)

Apr 3, 2019 11:10
Tachi Ōjō

A traffic accident causing injury or death happened yesterday near the center of Tokyo, and many trains stopped, so many people did tachi ōjō (立ち往生) at platforms.

The original meaning of tachi ōjō is "to die while standing," but now it usually means a state in which someone is incapable of moving.

Tachi (立ち) means "to stand," and ōjō (往生) is a Buddhist term that means "to die" or "to die and born in the legitimate land of Buddha."

That is to say, the literal meaning of tachi ōjō is equivalent to its original meaning.
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【No. 1566】Ne ni Motsu (根に持つ - Holding a Grudge)

Apr 2, 2019 21:50
Ne ni Motsu

To hold a grudge for a long time is referred to as ne ni motsu (根に持つ) in Japanese.

Since ne (根) means "root" and motsu (持つ) means "to have" or "to hold," the literal meaning of ne ni motsu is "to have/hold something with a root."

Here, "root" implies a bottom of one's heart.

In addition, the object that motsu points to is what you were suffered in the past.

That is to say, ne ni motsu implies that you remember what you were suffered in the past with the bottom of your heart.
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【No. 1565】The Kanji Character with the Largest Number of Strokes

Apr 1, 2019 20:06
The Kanji Character with the Largest Number of Strokes

Today I introduced you to the kanji character which has the largest number of strokes among daily-use kanji characters.

It is 鬱 (read as 'utsu'), which needs 29 brushstrokes.

鬱 can mean that plants grow thickly or things are active, but if you use it alone, it will mean "gloomy feeling" or "(clinical) depression."

I think that the action of writing this kanji will make you feel depressed.

Incidentally, the kanji with the second-largest number of strokes is 鑑 (read as 'kan/kagami'), which needs 23 brushstrokes.

鑑 means "example," "model," or "norm."
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【No. 1564】Shisshō (失笑 - Bursting into Laughter)

Mar 31, 2019 22:19
Shisshō

Have you ever burst into laughter because something was so funny?

Such a laugh is referred to as shisshō (失笑) in Japanese.

Shi/shitsu (失) usually means "lose," but here it means "mistake" or "wrong."

In addition, shō (笑) means "laugh," so the literal meaning of shisshō means "a wrong laugh."

However, since shitsu (失) is familiar in the meaning of "lose," many Japanese people believe that shisshō means "a bitter laugh."

According to a survey by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, more than 60% of Japanese people use this word incorrectly.
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【No. 1563】Misoji (三十路 - Thirty Years Old)

Mar 30, 2019 21:59
Misoji

I was misoji (三十路) last year.

Misoji means "thirty years old."

When describing one's age in Japanese, we usually add the word sai (歳 - literally means "age") to the word meaning a number, but there are special expressions for some ages, such as twenty years old and thirty years old.

Twenty years old is called hatachi (二十歳), thirty years old is called misoji (三十路), forty years old called yosoji (四十路), and fifty years old is called gosoji (五十路).

Some people say misoji to mean "thirties," but this usage is wrong.