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【No. 1362】Kusattemo Tai (腐っても鯛 - A Good Horse Becomes Never a Jade)

Sep 10, 2018 19:19
Truly excellent things or people would not lose their original value, even if they got somewhat worse.

To express such a fact, you can use the Japanese proverb kusattemo tai (腐っても鯛).

Kusaru (腐る) means "to rot," temo (ても) means "but," and tai (鯛) means "red sea bream."

Therefore, the literal meaning of kusattemo tai is "It rotted, but it's a red sea bream."

Since read sea bream has a good look and a good taste, it is treated as a lucky item in Japan.

Kusattemo tai is a kind of compliments, but using the verb kusaru (腐る - to rot) to someone is rude, so please be careful when you use it.
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【No. 1361】Toranu Tanuki no Kawazanyo (捕らぬ狸の皮算用 - Don't Count Your Chickens before They are Hatched)

Sep 9, 2018 16:58
Toranu Tanuki no Kawazanyo

I often do an act called "toranu tanuki no kawazanyo" (捕らぬ狸の皮算用).

Toranu (捕らぬ) means "not capture," tanuki (狸) means "raccoon dog," kawa (皮) means "skin," and zanyo/sanyo (算用) means "to calculate an amount of money or something."

That is to say, the literal meaning of this phrase is that you calculate an amount of selling raccoon leather before you capture the raccoon dog.

In actuality, this phrase has the wider meaning that before you get something, you plan in line with it.
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【No. 1360】Unomi (うのみ - Trusting the Obvious)

Sep 8, 2018 20:12
Unomi

I sometimes perform an action called unomi (うのみ).

U (う/鵜) means "cormorant," and nomi (のみ/呑み) means "to swallow" or "to drink."

The combination, unomi, means to swallow something or to believe someone's story/things without ascertaining the truth or without thinking.

It is thought that this term comes from the fact that cormorants swallow whole fish without chewing it.

Unomi is often used like unomi ni suru (うのみにする) with the verb suru (する), which means "to do something."
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【No. 1359】How to Wear Trousers

Sep 7, 2018 12:43
How to Wear Trousers

I heard that most Westerners pass both their legs through trousers at the same time while sitting on a bed or something.

On the other hand, most Japanese people wear trousers from their left leg while standing on one foot.

It is said that this custom comes from the fashion of samurai.

Samurai wore hakama (袴 - culottes-like Japanese garment), but it was difficult to wear hakama due to the long hems.

Because of this, samurai came to wear hakama while standing on one foot so that they can face enemies rapidly even when they are changing the garment.
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【No. 1358】Tatami (畳 - Tatami Mat)

Sep 6, 2018 19:25
Tatami

I like a smell of tatami (畳).

Tatami is a traditional Japanese flooring material in Japanese-style rooms; it is made by weaving soft rush into a settled straw.

In the past, tatami was used as a generic term for rugs or mats including thin ones.

Since rugs and mats were folded when we don't use them, the noun tatami was created by nominalizing the verb tatamu (たたむ - meaning "to fold").

Unfortunately, it is said that the tatami industry is suffering from a shortage of successors.

Incidentally, when you read the kanji 畳 as jō in the Chinese reading, it represents the unit for the area of a space.
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【No. 1357】Isogaba Maware (急がば回れ - More Haste, Less Speed)

Sep 5, 2018 14:08
Isogaba Maware

Yesterday, a Lang-8 user taught me the English phrase "Haste makes waste."

This reminded me of the similar Japanese proverb, isogaba maware (急がば回れ).

Isogu (急ぐ) means "to hurry" or "haste," maware (回れ) means "to go around."

Even if you are in a hurry, it may be dangerous or make you get lost to use an unfamiliar shortcut.

In many cases, choosing a safe and reliable way would eventually lead to better results though it might seem like a detour.

The proverb isogaba maware expresses such a fact.
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【No. 1356】Yudan Taiteki (油断大敵 - Don't Be Careless)

Sep 4, 2018 23:24
Yudan Taiteki

Previously, I introduced you to the word yudan (油断), which means to let one's guard down or to be careless.

This word is often used in the famous four-character idiom, yudan taiteki (油断大敵).

Tai/dai (大) means "big" or "great," and teki (敵) means "enemy."

That is to say, yudan taiteki means that yudan (carelessness) is a big enemy because if you are in a state called yudan (if you are careless), you can cause a catastrophe.

This idiom can be translated into English as "Security/carelessness is the greatest enemy" or "Don't be careless."
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【No. 1355】Fusessei (不摂生 - Intemperance)

Sep 3, 2018 17:08
Fusessei

These days I have lived a lifestyle called fusessei (不摂生).

Fu (不) is a negative word, and sessei (摂生) means to be careful of your health so as not to fall sick.

Therefore, fusessei means that you are not careful of your health or you do something harmful to your health.

If you fall sick as a result of fusessei, it can be expressed as fusessei ga tataru (不摂生がたたる) by using the verb tataru (たたる).

Originally, tataru means that the gods, Buddha, or ghosts bring harm, but it can also mean that something occurs a bad result.
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【No. 1354】Akuji Senri wo Hashiru (悪事千里を走る - Bad News has Wings)

Sep 2, 2018 17:17
Akuji Senri wo Hashiru

If you do bad things, the rumor will spread rapidly.

To express such a fact, you can use the proverb "akuji senri wo hashiru" (悪事千里を走る)

Aku (悪) means "bad" or "evil," ji (事) means "thing," sen (千) means "thousand," ri (里) means a unit of length that represents about 4 kilometers, and hashiru (走る) means "to run."

That is to say, this proverb implies that if someone does bad things, the fact or rumor will run over/spread around 4000 kilometers.
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【No. 1353】My 31st Birthday

Sep 1, 2018 14:50
My 31st Birthday

Today is my 31th birthday.

In the past several years, I have spent my birthday alone.

However, since I have someone who celebrates me this year, I'm looking forward to the small birthday party tonight.

Incidentally, the Egnlish word "birthday" is referred to as tanjōbi (誕生日 - literally "birthday" or "birth date") in Japanese, whereas "birth date" is referred to as seinen gappi (生年月日).

Sei (生) means "birth," nen (年) means "year," ga/getsu/tsuki (月) means "month," and pi/hi (日) means "day."
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【No. 1352】Nakittsura ni Hachi (泣きっ面に蜂 - Adding Insult to Injury)

Aug 31, 2018 20:58
Nakittsura ni Hachi

Yesterday, I introduced you to the expression fundari kettari (踏んだり蹴ったり), which means that one bad thing after another happens.

There is another Japanese proverb that has the similar meaning to it -- it is nakittsura ni hachi (泣きっ面に蜂).

Naki (泣き) means "crying," tsura (面) means "face," and hachi (蜂) means "bee."

That is to say, nakkittsura ni hachi means that even though someone is crying already because of an unfortunate thing, a bee stings him/her.
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【No. 1351】Fundari Kettari (踏んだり蹴ったり - A Streak of Bad Luck)

Aug 30, 2018 17:45
Fundari Kettari

Today was a day described as fundari kettari (踏んだり蹴ったり) to me.

Fundari kettari is an expression meaning that bad things happen to someone in a row.

Fumu (踏む) means "to tread on something" and keru (蹴る) means "to kick something."

I think that most Japanese people believe that this expression implies a misfortune of being trodden and kicked.

However, both fundari and kettari are the active voice.

The actual etymology is that treading on and kicking an undesirable thing (such as feces) is the calamity.
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【No. 1350】Omaru (おまる - Jerry/Potty)

Aug 29, 2018 19:58
Omaru

In Japan, we call portable indoor toilets omaru (おまる).

O (お) is a polite prefix, and maru (まる) is an archaic term that means to discharge one's urine or evacuate one's bowels.

Omaru is written as 御虎子 in kanji, and its literal meaning is "a tiger's child."

In the past, omaru was made of wood, and it had a box shape, but koban (小判 - an oval gold coin) shapes have become common since the Edo period.

Since koban was sometimes called tora no ko (虎の子 - literally "a tiger's child"), the kanji of omaru became 御虎子.
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【No. 1349】Shikaesi, Fukushū, Houfuku (仕返し、復讐、報復）

Aug 28, 2018 20:26
Shikaesi, Fukushū, Houfuku

I introduced you to the Japanese term shippe gaeshi (しっぺ返し - paying back) yesterday.

In addition to it, there are other terms that mean something like "revenge" -- shikaeshi (仕返し), fukushū (復讐) and houfuku (報復).

The most common one is shikaeshi, and it is often used for petty things such as quarrels.

On the other hand, when the scale of the given harm is large, fukushū or houfuku would be used.

Houfuku contains a nuance of an acute resentment.

Fukushū can be used for not only personal matters but also groups or countries.

Additionally, shippe gaeshi is usually used for petty things as well as shikaeshi, but it has a nuance of "immediately" or "in the same way."
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【No. 1348】Shippe Gaeshi (しっぺ返し - Paying Back)

Aug 27, 2018 21:27
Shippe Gaeshi

When someone does something bad to you, if you pay him/her in the same coin, the act is called shippe gaeshi (しっぺ返し).

Originally, shippe gaeshi was called shippei gaeshi (竹篦返し).

Shippei (竹篦) is a bamboo stick that is used to mentor Zen monks, and gaeshi/kaeshi (返し) means "to get back."

In Zen sitting meditation, when the posture of a monk is disturbed due to distracting thoughts, the guide hits shippei on the monk's shoulder.

That is to say, shippei gaeshi means to hit back shippei. Later, shippei changed to shippe.
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【No. 1347】Akane Gumo (茜雲 - Rosy Cloud)

Aug 26, 2018 18:22
Akane Gumo

Yesterday, I introduced you to my favorite kind of clouds, nyūdō gumo (入道雲).

I also like some other types of clouds.

For example, I like akane gumo (茜雲 – literally “madder clouds”), which are made by the morning sun or the setting sun.

Akane (茜) is a perennial and climbing plant, and its root can become a dark red dye, so this term also means such a color.

Additionally, gumo/kumo (雲) means "cloud."

That is to say, akane gumo are clouds with dark red that you can see at sunrise or sunset.
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【No. 1346】Nyūdō Gumo (入道雲 - Cumulonimbus Cloud)

Aug 25, 2018 21:20
Nyūdō Gumo

I like nyūdō gumo (入道雲), which you can see in the summer sky.

Nyūdō gumo are huge and clear clouds like mountains that are made by rising air currents -- which are called cumulonimbus clouds in English.

Nyūdō (入道) is a traditional Japanese specter who has a shaven head, and gumo/kumo (雲) means "cloud."

This term was made by comparing this specter with the high cumulonimbus clouds.

Incidentally, nyūdō gumo is a slang term, and its official name in Japan is sekiran un (積乱雲 - literally "piled and disordered clouds").
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【No. 1345】Kami wo Suku (髪をすく - Thinning Out One's Hair)

Aug 24, 2018 11:12
I had my hair cut at a barbershop yesterday.

Whenever I go to a barbershop, in addition to the order of cut length, I always say "suite kudasai" (すいて下さい) by using the Japanese verb suku (すく).

Suku originally meant to comb, fix or shove one's hair.

However, when you use this verb at barbershops or hair salons, it is usually mean to thin out one's hair or reduce the volume of one's hair.

The reason is probably that the character su (す) itself has a nuance of "hollow."
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【No. 1344】Fuseki (布石 - Preparation)

Aug 23, 2018 18:47
Fuseki

I introduced you to Japanese terms two days ago and three days ago.

Additionally, yesterday I introduced a coined word that is made by combining the previous two Japanese terms.

As I did, to prepare for something in advance for the future is called fuseki (布石) in Japanese.

Fu (布) means "to arrange/deploy" and seki (石) means "stone," especially here it is "Go stone."

Originally, fuseki was a term of Go, and it has meant to arrange/deploy stones in the early stage preparing for the later stage.

Connected to the above meaning, it has come to be used in various situations.
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【No. 1343】Urayamakeshikaran (うらやまけしからん)

Aug 22, 2018 12:14
Urayamakeshikaran

I introduced you to keshikaran (けしからん) two days ago and urayamashī (うらやましい) yesterday.

Today I would like to introduce the slang term urayamakeshikaran (うらやまけしからん), which was made by combining these two terms.

As explained in previous posts, keshikaran expresses a feeling of anger to unreasonable/undesirable things, whereas urayamashī expresses a sense of longing for someone's lucky situation.

Therefore, the combination means that a situation is unreasonable, so you should against for that, but you have a longing for the situation in your heart.

Urayamakeshikaran is mainly used when seeing sexual situations or cute animals.