Iiete Myō (言い得て妙 - Perfect Phrasing)

Iiete Myō

When someone says a clever expression and it is absolutely right, you can represent it as the phrase 'iiete myō' (言い得て妙) in Japanese.

Since 'ii' (言い) means "to say," 'ete' (得て) means "can," and 'myō' (妙) means "wonder/clever/beautiful," 'iiete myō' literally means "one can say something clever and beautiful."

The intonation of 'iiete myō' is almost flat, but it drops slightly at the 'te' (て) of 'ete' (得て).

This phrase can be translated into English as "perfect phrasing" or "beautifully put."

言い得て妙

表現がとても的確・巧妙でまさにそのとおりであるとき、そのさまを「言い得て妙」と表すことがあります。

「言い」は "to say"、「得て」は "can"、「妙」は "wonder/clever/beautiful" を意味するので、「言い得て妙」は文字どおり "one can say something clever and beautiful" という意味になります。

「言い得て妙」はほぼ平坦なイントネーションですが、「得て」の「て」の部分で若干下がります。

英語では "perfect phrasing" や "beautifully put" のように訳されるようです。

• When someone says a clever expression and it is absolutely right, you can represent it as the phrase 'iiete myō' (言い得て妙) in Japanese.
• When someone says a clever expression and it is absolutely right, you can represent it as the phrase 'iiete myō' (言い得て妙) in Japanese.a better way to say this is :When someone says a clever expression and it is absolutely right, you can use the Japanese phrase 'iiete myō' (言い得て妙)