一石二鳥 Killing two Birds with one Stone

一石二鳥 Kill Two Birds with One Stone

一石二鳥

Japanese いっ　せき　に　ちょう isseki ni chou Literal One stone; two birds English Equivalent Killing two birds with one stone. Notes This is one of the few proverbs that is almost exactly the same as a famous English proverb. 一石 isseki - One stone [The ichi adds a small っ; another common pronunciation for stone is ishi] 二鳥 ni chou - Two birds [an on reading for bird is chou]

演歌を聞くと、日本の文化に触れながら日本語の勉強ができるので、一石二鳥だ。
enka o kiku to, nihon no bunka ni furenagara nihongo no benkyou ga dekiru node, isseki nichou.
Listening to enka, I learn about Japanese culture and I am able to study Japanese at the same time. I kill two birds with one stone.

 

演歌 enka - traditional Japanese popular music style
聞くと kiku to - when listening...
日本の文化 nihon no bunka - Japanese culture
触れながら furenagara - while experiencing; ながら means 'while'
日本語 nihongo - Japanese language
勉強 benkyou - study
日本語の勉強 nihongo no benkyou - studying Japanese
できる dekiru - can; able
ので node - therefore
だ da - plain form of です; copula

猫に小判 Give a Cat a Gold Coin

猫に小判 Cast Pearls to a Swine

 

猫に小判

Japanese ねこ に こばん neko ni koban Literal Give money to a cat English Equivalent To cast pearls before swine Notes 猫に neko ni (give) to a cat [に shows direction]; A 小判 koban was an oval gold coin used during the Edo period; 豚に真珠 buta ni shinju Pearls to a pig, from the Bible, is also used often and means basically the same thing.

 

宝石に興味のない人にダイヤモンドを上げても、猫に小判だ。
houseki ni kyoumi no nai hito ni daiyamondo o agetemo, neko ni koban da.
For someone who has no interest in precious stones, even giving him a diamond would be casting pearls before swine.

 

宝石 houseki—precious stones, gems
興味のない人 kyoumi no nai hito—a person not interested in...
ダイヤモンド daiyamondo—diamond
上げても agete mo—even if (you give him a diamond)

猿も木から落ちる Even Monkeys Fall from Trees

猿も木から落ちる Even Monkeys fall from Trees

猿も木から落ちる

Japanese さるも　き　から　おちる saru mo ki kara ochiru Literal Even monkeys fall from trees. English Equivalent Everyone makes mistakes. Notes One of the most famous Japanese proverbs out there! 猿も saru mo - Even a Monkey 木から ki kara - from a tree 落ちる ochiru - to fall

The example sentence (not to be taken too seriously), is more for intermediates:

猿も木から落ちるというけど、あんなに賢い国語の先生が、「一」という字を間違えたな んて信じられない。
saru mo ki kara ochiru to iu kedo, anna ni kashikoi kokugo no sensei ga, ichi to iu ji o machigaeta nante shijirarenai
As they say, "Even monkeys fall from trees," but for such a brilliant Japanese teacher to mess up such a character is hard to believe.

 

猿も saru mo - Even a Monkey
木から ki kara - from a tree
落ちる ochiru - to fall
という to iu - is like a quotation marker
けど kedo - but
あんなに annani- for such a
賢い kashikoi - wise; bright; clever
国語の先生 kokugo no sensei - teacher of Japanese
一 ichi - one; indisputedly the easiest of all kanji
という to iu - is like a quotation marker
字 ji - character; here meaning Chinese characters
間違えた machigaeta -　made a mistake
なんて nante -　such as but with a negative emphasis
信じられない shinjirarenai - I can't believe it

Clay's Proverbs

CLAY'S PROVERBS
WORDS OF WISDOM
(which may or may not be applicable in the real world)

1. クレイの諺： 「僕の万年床は僕の自慢」
kurei no kotowaza: "boku no mannendoko wa boku no jiman"
Clay's proverb: My unmade bed is my pride.

2. クレイの諺： 「忍者走りをするとき、靴ひもがゆるんでいると悲惨なことを招く」
kurei no kotowaza: "ninjabashiri o suru toki, kutsuhimo ga yurundeiru to hisan na koto o maneku"
Clay's proverb: "When running ninja-style, having loose shoe strings invites misery"

3. クレイの諺： 「確かに刀ははしに勝る」
kurei no kotowaza: tashikani katana wa hashi ni masaru.
Clay's proverb: "Most assuredly, the sword is mightier than the chopsticks."

Kotowaza & Sayings

KOTOWAZA (proverbs) & SAYINGS IN JAPANESE

Today's focus will be on kotowaza (proverbs) and sayings.  There are tons of proverbs and set sayings in Japanese.  Knowing kotowaza will make your Japanese more natural and improve your understanding of the Japanese way of thinking. We will look at 6 sayings and break-them-down to try to understand where it came from. 

CONTENTS:
1. 神出鬼没 shin shutsu ki botsu - to appear & disappear
2. 自画自賛 ji ga ji san - self-praise
3. 猿も木から落ちる。 saru mo ki kara ochiru. - Even monkeys fall from a tree
4. 一石二鳥 isseki ni chou - to kill 2 birds with 1 stone
5. 十人十色 juu nin to iro - different strokes for different folks
6. 壁に耳あり、障子に目あ り kabe ni mimi ari shouji ni me ari - the walls have ears, the paper doors have eyes

MOOD SETTING: imagine a lonesome samurai reciting Shakespeare with a katana in one hand and a book of poetry in the other.

LET'S BEGIN with a difficult, but fun ninja phrase:

#1: 神出鬼没 shin shutsu ki botsu

MEANING: " To appear and disappear like a phantom (unexpected) "

BREAK IT DOWN:

神 shin
(Other readings:  KAMI, JIN)
"God, deity,  of the Supernatural..."
( OTHER: 神様 kami sama - God, 神学 shin gaku - theology

出 shutsu
(Other readings: SHUTSU, DEru, DAsu)
"to come out, to bring out, to go out, out"
( OTHER: 出口 de guchi - exit (door); 出発 shuppatsu - to depart, leave)

NOTE: Usually a 4 kanji combo is two pairs of kanji stuck together.  However,
in this case SHIN SHUTSU by itself isn't used as a word.  But taking the 2 kanji
individually we understand the meaning to be something along the lines of
the supernatural coming out.

鬼 ki
(Other readings: ONI)
"Oni, orge, or some evil creature from Japanese folk lore"
( OTHER: 鬼ごっこ oni gokko - tag game, "You are the Oni!")

没 botsu
"rejection, to sink, to die"

BACK TO TOP

YOU ARE DOING WELL! NEXT...

#2: 自画自賛 ji ga ji san

MEANING: " Every potter praises his own pot (To praise one's own work) "

BREAK IT DOWN:

自 ji
( Other readings: SHI, MIZUKAra)
"oneself, self"
( OTHER: 自分 ji bun - oneself; 自由 ji yuu - freedom, free)

画 ga
( Other readings: KAKU)
"a picture"
( OTHER: 映画 ei ga - movie; 漫画 man ga - manga)

賛 san
"to praise, agree"
( OTHER: 賛美 san bi - praise, adoration)

BACK TO TOP

AND NOW:

#3: 猿も木から落ちる。 saru mo ki kara ochiru.

MEANING: " Even monkeys fall from trees. (Even experts mess up once in a while.) "

BREAK IT DOWN:

猿 saru
( Other readings: en )
"monkey"

も mo = "also, too"

木 ki
( Other readings: MOKU, BOKU)
"tree"
( OTHER: MOKU YOU BI - Thursday)

から kara = "from"

落ちる ochiru
"to fall, drop"

BACK TO TOP

JUST A LITTLE MORE:

#4: 一石二鳥 isseki ni chou

MEANING: " to kill two birds with one stone " lit: " one stone; two birds "

BREAK IT DOWN:

一石 isseki
(This is ICHI with SEKI = ISSEKI (the ICHI is reduced to いっ))
" ichi - one; seki - stone, rock"

二 ni
"two"

鳥 chou
"bird"
( OTHER READINGS: tori )

NOTE: this is the same as the English, to kill 2 birds with 1 stone.

BACK TO TOP

#5 : 十人十色 juu nin to iro

MEANING: " different strokes for different folks " lit: " 10 people; 10 colors "

BREAK IT DOWN:

十 juu
"ten"
( OTHER READINGS: to )

人 nin
"people, person"
( OTHER READINGS: hito, jin )

色 iro
"color"
( OTHER READINGS: shoku )

#6 : 壁に耳あり、障子に目あり kabe ni mimi ari shouji ni me ari

MEANING: " the walls have ears, the door have eyes "

BREAK IT DOWN:

壁 kabe
"wall"

耳 mimi
"ear, ears"

障子 shouji
"Japanese paper door"

NOTES:
ni (に) is needed to show position (at the wall; on the door...) 
ari (あり) is a shortened version of arimasu (to exist, to be)

RECAP:

1. 神出鬼没 shin shutsu ki botsu - to appear & disappear
2. 自画自賛 ji ga ji san - self-praise
3. 猿も木から落ちる。 saru mo ki kara ochiru. - Even monkeys fall from a tree
4. 一石二鳥 isseki ni chou - to kill 2 birds with 1 stone
5. 十人十色 juu nin to iro - different strokes for different folks
6. 壁に耳あり、障子に目あり kabe ni mimi ari shouji ni me ari  - the walls have ears, the doors have eyes

Three Japanese Proverbs about Food

Three Japanese proverbs about food: 花より団子 Hana yori dango - Food over Flowers 絵に描いた餅 E ni Kaita Mochi - Can't eat a painted cake 武士はくわねど高楊枝 Bushi wa kuwanedo taka youji - Even if a samurai hasn't eaten he holds his toothpick high.

口は災いのもと The Mouth is the Origin of Disasters

口は災いのもと (or 口は禍のもと) The mouth is the origin of disasters

口は禍のもと

Japanese くち　は　わざわい　の　もと kuchi wa wazawai no moto Literal The mouth is the origin of disasters. English Equivalent The mouth is the gate of misfortune. Notes A quick Google search seems to give 災い a lead over 禍, but it appears both are in usage with this proverb.

口は禍のもとだから、噂話はやめたほうがいい。
kuchi wa wazawai no moto dakara uwasa banashi wa yameta hou ga ii.
The mouth is the origin of disasters, therefore you should stop gossiping.

 

口 kuchi - mouth
は wa - (topic particle)
禍 wazawai - calamity; disaster; catastrophe
だから dakara - so; therefore
噂話 uwasa banashi - gossip (噂 uwasa rumor; hearsay + 話 hanashi talk; story - the 'h' takes a harder 'b')
やめたほうがいい yameta hou ga ii - should (ought to) stop

塵も積もれば Even Dust when Piled...

塵も積もれば、山となる Even Dust, When Piled up, Will Become a Mountain.

 

塵も積もれば、山となる

Japanese ちりもつもれば、やまとなる chiri mo tsumoreba, yama to naru Literal Even dust when pile up, becomes a mountain. English Equivalent Many a little makes a mickle. [mickle (noun) a large amount] Notes 塵も chiri mo Dust too The も (also, too) is better expressed as 'even' in English 積もれば tsumoreba If piled up Conditional (-eba) form of 積もる tsumoru accumulate; pile up

 

毎日、英単語をひとつずつおぼえよう。ちりも積もれば、山となるというからね。
mainichi, eitango o hitotsu zutsu oboeyou. chiri mo tsumoreba, yama to naru to iu kara ne.
Learn one English word each day. As they say, even dust when piled up becomes a mountain.

 

毎日 mainichi—every day
英単語 eitango—English word
を o—direct object marker
ひとつずつ hitotsu zutsu—one by one
おぼえよう oboeyou—Volitional form of 覚える oboeru meaning "Let's learn"; memorize, learn
というからね to iu kara ne—'As they say'

頭隠して、尻隠さず Hide Head, Don't Hide Butt

頭隠して、尻隠さず Cover your head, but Expose your Butt

頭隠して、尻隠さず

Japanese あたまかくして、しりかくさず atama kakushite, shiri kakusazu Literal Hide head, don't hide butt English Equivalent Hiding your head in the sand (like an Ostrich) [Not a very similar meaning, but both are used for ridicule when someone does something foolish] Notes 隠して kakushite hiding The て form of 隠す kakusu to hide; conceal 隠さず kakusazu not hide The ず is a negative ending

 

しんのすけは、かくれんぼうするとき、いつもおしりが見えている。まさに、頭隠して尻隠さずだ。
shinnosuke wa, kakurenbou suru toki, itsumo oshiri ga mieteiru. masa ni, atama kakushite shiri kakusazu da..
Shinnosuke when playing hide-and-go-seek, always (hides somewhere that) exposes his backend. Truly, this is hiding his head but not his butt.

 

しんのすけ shinnosuke—a boy's name
かくれんぼう kakurenbou—hide-and-go-seek (children's game)
するとき suru toki—when doing...
いつも itsumo—always
おしり oshiri—butt; backend
見えている miete iru—able to be seen
まさに masa ni—surely; certainly; truly

Toil is the Father of Fame

Toil is the Father of Fame

 

Today's famous saying is from the Greek tragedian Euripides (Εὐριπίδης and in Japanese, エウリピデス). Euripides was one of the three famous writers of Greek tragedies in ancient Greece. He is so famous, in fact, he now has his own page at Wikipedia. Here it is.

Πόνος γὰρ ὡς λέγουσιν, εὐκλεϊης, πατὴρ.
For Toil, as they say, is the father of fame.

And here is a Japanese translation:

労働は名声の父と言われている。 roudou wa meisei no chichi to iwarete iru.

Break it down:

労働 roudou (manual) labor; toil
名声 meisei fame; renown; reputation
父 chichi father
名声の父 meisei no chichi the 'father' of fame
と言われている to iwarete iru it is said...

以心伝心 Telepathy

以心伝心 Telepathy

右往左往 Run about in Confusion

右往左往 Running around like a chicken with its head cut off

 

右往左往

Japanese うおうさおう u ou sa ou Literal go right and left English Equivalent Running around like a chicken with its head cut off; go in all directions Notes Learning this 四字熟語 is a great way to remember the on readings of right and left. I don't know about you, but learning みぎ and ひだり seemed easy compared to remembering which was う and which was さ. If you can remember 'right' goes first, saying this fun word will help clear up the confusion. u (right) ou sa (left) ou 右折 u setsu--a right turn (often heard by car navigation systems) 左折 sa setsu--a left turn

 

突然の地震で人々は右往左往した。
totsuzen no jishin de hitobito wa uousaou shita.
A sudden earthquake caused the people to go in all directions.

 

突然の totsuzen no—sudden; unexpected
地震 jishin—earthquake
人々hito bito—people [The 々shows repetition of the previous kanji: 人人; Note the sound change on the second 'hito']
した shita—Use する with 右往左往

有頂天 Ecstasy

有頂天 Ecstasy

 

有頂天

Japanese うちょうてん u chou ten Literal Have (reached) the highest heaven English Equivalent On cloud nine; ecstasy; in raptures; be elated  Notes 有頂天 is a translation of the sanskrit word for the highest heaven in Buddhism. A 2005 star-studded comedy movie directed by 三谷幸喜 Mitani Koki was titled THE有頂天ホテル. OK, it isn't a FOUR character 四字熟語! But it is still useful!

 

一億円の宝くじをあてた人は有頂天になった。
ichi oku en no takarakuji o ateta hito wa uchouten ni natta.
The person who won the hundred million yen lottery was in ecstasy.

 

一億 ichi oku—100,000,000
宝くじ takara kuji—lottery
あてた ateta—hit the mark (for the lotter) [当ててみて atete mite Take a guess]
あてた人 ateta hito—the person who won (the lottery)
になった ni natta—になる

私利私欲 Greed

私利私欲 Greed; Self-Interest

 

私利私欲

Japanese しりしよく shi ri shi yoku Literal Self-interest and selfish desire English Equivalent Motivated by greed Notes 私 is the "I, me" pronoun watashi. Other common examples of using the し reading are: 私立学校 shiritsu gakkou Private school 私有 shi yuu Private ownership 私有地 shi yuu chi Private land 私的感情 shi teki kan jou Personal feelings

 

私利私欲に駆られる。
shirishiyoku ni karareru.
To be driven by greed.

 

駆られる karareru—be driven by...; be carried away by (one's feelings); succumb to (curiosity); be assailed by (fears) [ from Kodansha's 新和英大辞典]

自画自賛 Singing one's own Praises

自画自賛 Singing One's Own Praises

自画自賛

Japanese じがじさん ji ga ji san Literal One's own picture; praising oneself English Equivalent Singing one's own Praises Tooting one's own Horn Notes The 自 as you may guess adds the meaning of 'oneself.' You may know it from the common 自分 jibun 'oneself' and 自由 jiyuu 'freedom'

 

自画自賛に聞こえるかもしれませんが、ぼくは本当に歌がうまいよ。
jigajisan ni kikoeru kamoshiremasen ga, boku wa hontou ni uta ga umai yo
It may sound like I'm bragging, but I'm really good at singing.

 

に聞こえる ni kikoeru—sounds like... [太くに見える futoku ni mieru - to look (appear) fat]
かもしれません kamoshiremasen—may; might; possibly
が ga—but
ぼく boku—I (usually used with males)
本当に hontou ni—really; truly (adv)
歌 uta—song [in this case singing in general]
うまい umai—good at; skillful; cleaver [can also be used with food or drink to mean 'delicious']

豪華絢爛　magnificent; luxurious and splendid

豪華絢爛 Magnificent; Luxurious and Splendid

豪華絢爛

Japanese 豪華絢爛 gou ka ken ran Literal 豪華 gouka splendid 絢爛 kenran gorgeousness; ornateness English Equivalent Magnificent; Luxurious and Splendid Notes If you want to impress your host while visiting someone's house, 豪華絢爛 is a good word to use. It is also used for 'deluxe edition' of a book: 豪華版 goukaban This is also used idiomatically to say something is more than you expected. これは豪華版だ！ That (a meal) is quite something!

 

豪華絢爛な城。
goukakenran na shiro.
An elegant castle.

城 shiro—castle

 

彼女の結婚式は豪華絢爛だった。
kanojo no kekkonshiki wa goukakenran datta.
Her wedding was really splendid.

彼女 kanojo—she
結婚式 kekkon shiki—wedding ceremony [～式 ceremony]

 

豊臣秀吉の茶室は豪華絢爛だったと伝えられる。
toyotomi hideyoshi no chashitsu wa goukakenran datta to tsutaerareru.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi's tea room is said to be have been exquisite

豊臣秀吉 toyotomi hideyoshi—Toyotomi Hideyoshi; a powerful daimyo during the sengoku period.
茶室 cha shitsu—room for the tea ceremony; tea house
と伝えられる to tsutaerareru—It is said...