【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.
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.
恩を仇で返す
恩を受けたにも関わらず、感謝するどころか、害を加えるようなことをした経験はありますか？
（「ない」と言ってほしいです。）
そのような行為のことを、「恩を仇で返す」と言います。
「恩」は "favor"、「仇」は "harm"、「返す」は "to return" を意味するので、「恩を仇で返す」の文字どおりの意味は "to do harm as a return of favors" となります。
例えば、大事に育ててくれた両親を裏切る行為などを表現する際に使うことができます。
恩を受けたにも関わらず、感謝するどころか、害を加えるようなことをした経験はありますか？
（「ない」と言ってほしいです。）
そのような行為のことを、「恩を仇で返す」と言います。
「恩」は "favor"、「仇」は "harm"、「返す」は "to return" を意味するので、「恩を仇で返す」の文字どおりの意味は "to do harm as a return of favors" となります。
例えば、大事に育ててくれた両親を裏切る行為などを表現する際に使うことができます。
Corrections (1)
No. 1 Amop567
- On wo Ada de Kaesu (恩を仇で返す - Biting the Hand that Feeds One)
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On wo Ada de Kaesu (恩を仇で返す - Biting the Hand that Feeds One/You)
"You" would be a little more common
- Have you ever done harm to someone without a feeling of gratitude, even though he/she took care of you?
-
Have you ever returned someone's kindness by doing harm to them rather than being thankful?
"doing harm without gratitude" doesn't sound right because in normal circumstances it would be very odd to feel gratitude while doing harm.
- (I would like you to say "No.")
-
(I hope the answer is "no".)
More natural
- Such an action is called 'on wo ada de kaesu' (恩を仇で返す) in Japanese.
- This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
- For example, you can use it to describe a scene that a child betrays his/her parents who have cherished the child.
-
For example, you can use it to describe a scene that a child betrays their parents who have cherished them.
I recommend using the singular "they" here. "his/her" sounds very clunky, so does repeating the word "child". If you want to use gendered language, it's better to choose one or the other.
Amop567
...that a child...→...in which a child...
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For example, you can use it to describe a scene that a child betrays their parents who have cherished them.
I recommend using the singular "they" here. "his/her" sounds very clunky, so does repeating the word "child". If you want to use gendered language, it's better to choose one or the other.
Toru
Thank you so much for the corrections and explanations! :)
Thank you so much for the corrections and explanations! :)