Kabe ni Mimi Ari Shoji ni Me Ari

Today, I will talk about the Japanese proverb "kabe ni mimi ari shoji ni me ari."

This proverb expresses that secret things or gossips are prone to leak.

The literal meaning of "kabe ni mimi ari" is "there are ears on walls," and it indicates that someone might listen to anytime while placing his/her ear against a wall.

The literal meaning of "shoji ni me ari" is "there are eyes on shoji (Japanese paper sliding doors)," and it indicates that someone might peep inside through the door.

That is to say, this proverb says that you have no idea when and who listen/see your talks and acts, so you have to be careful whatever you do.

By the way, I heard that there is almost the same proverb in English "Walls have ears."

壁に耳あり障子に目あり

今日は日本のことわざ「壁に耳あり障子に目あり」を紹介します。

このことわざは、隠し事や陰口は漏れやすいということを表しています。

「壁に耳あり」は、常に誰かが壁に耳をあてて聞いているかもしれない、ということです。

「障子に目あり」は、誰かが障子に穴をあけて覗き見しているかもしれない、ということです。

すなわち、いつ誰が見聞きしているかわからないので、注意しなさいという戒めのことわざです。

ちなみにアメリカにも、"Walls have ears" (壁は耳を持っている) という同じ意味のことわざがあるそうです。

• Today, I will talk about the Japanese proverb "kabe ni mimi ari shoji ni me ari."
• This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!

• This proverb expresses that secret things or gossips are prone to leak.
• This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!

• The literal meaning of "kabe ni mimi ari" is "there are ears on walls," and it indicates that someone might listen to anytime while placing his/her ear against a wall.
• This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!

• The literal meaning of "shoji ni me ari" is "there are eyes on shoji (Japanese paper sliding doors)," and it indicates that someone might peep inside through the door.
• The literal meaning of "shoji ni me ari" is "there are eyes on shoji (Japanese paper sliding doors)" and it indicates that someone might peep inside through the door.

• That is to say, this proverb says that you have no idea when and who listen/see your talks and acts, so you have to be careful whatever you do.
• That is to say, this proverb says that you have no idea when and who will listen to/see your talks and acts, so you have to be careful whatever you do.

• By the way, I heard that there is almost the same proverb in English "Walls have ears."
• By the way, I heard that there is almost the same proverb in English "The walls have ears."

Almost perfect =)

Interestingly I know of two expressions "The walls have ears" and "The walls have eyes", which are both similar in meaning but are two separate expressions instead of one.

• Today, I will talk about the Japanese proverb "kabe ni mimi ari shoji ni me ari."
• This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!

• This proverb expresses that secret things or gossips are prone to leak.
• This proverb expresses that secrets and gossip are prone to spread.

• The literal meaning of "kabe ni mimi ari" is "there are ears on walls," and it indicates that someone might listen to anytime while placing his/her ear against a wall.
• The literal meaning of "kabe ni mimi ari" is "there are ears on the walls," and it indicates that someone might be listening to anytime by pressing his/her ear against the wall.

• The literal meaning of "shoji ni me ari" is "there are eyes on shoji (Japanese paper sliding doors)," and it indicates that someone might peep inside through the door.
• The literal meaning of "shoji ni me ari" is "there are eyes on the shoji (Japanese paper sliding doors)," and it indicates that someone might be peeping inside through the door.

• That is to say, this proverb says that you have no idea when and who listen/see your talks and acts, so you have to be careful whatever you do.
• That is to say, this proverb says that you have no idea when and who may hear/see the things you say and do, so you have to be careful whatever you do.

Wow! Yes, we have the exact same phrase! "The walls have ears!"

I wonder how many phrases there are that are the same in Japanese and English? It seems there are a lot!