寒中水泳 Swimming in the Middle of Winter

寒中水泳 swimming in the middle of winter; a midwinter swim

The word:	Closer look at the kanji:	B = Beginner | I = Intermediate | A = Advanced
寒中水泳 kan chuu sui ei swimming in the middle of winter; a midwinter swim	寒 kan cold 中 chuu middle, in the midst of 水 sui water 泳 ei swimming	寒い samui - cold (weather) [B] 勉強中 benkyou chuu - while studying, in the midst of studying [I] 水中 sui chuu - underwater [I] 水曜日 sui you bi - Wednesday [B]

At last! Harolds induction to the Polar Bear Club will be complete...

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SUGGESTED USAGE: 趣味ですか？読書と切手収集と寒中水泳です。 shumi desu ka? dokusho to kitte shuushuu to kanchuusuiei desu. My hobbies? They are reading books, collecting stamps and swimming in the dead of winter.

ABOUT SUGGESTED USAGE:

趣味 shumi - hobby
趣味ですか？ shumi desu ka? - The person is repeating a question asked to himself.
読書 doku sho - reading books
切手 kitte - postal stamp
切手収集 kitte shuu shuu - collecting stamps

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言語道断 Something so Bad, There are no Words

言語道断 Something so Bad, There are no Words

The word:	Closer look at the kanji:	B = Beginner | I = Intermediate | A = Advanced
言語道断 gon go dou dan Language's way is closed (something so bad, there are no words)	言 gon to speak, words 語 go word, language 道 dou way, road 断 dan cut off	言語 gen go - a language [I] 英語 ei go - English [B] 日本語 ni hon go - Japanese [B] 道路 dou ro - a road [B] 道具 dou gu - tools [B] 断食 dan jiki - to fast (not eat) [A]

This wouldnt happen in McDonalds... Or would it?!

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SUGGESTED USAGE: 焼き猫なんて、言語道断だよ。焼き犬を下さい。 yaki neko nante, gongodoudan da yo. yaki inu o kudasai Fried cat?! Thats proposterous! I will go with the fried dog, please.

ABOUT SUGGESTED USAGE:

焼き... yaki - fried... 焼きそば yakisoba (fried noodles) and 焼き鳥 yaki tori are pretty well known examples
なんて nante - How?! Used for emphasis and shock value
を下さい o kudasai - give me... kudasai is often used when ordering. You may also say ~ni shimasu.

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証拠隠滅 Destruction of Evidence

証拠隠滅 destruction of evidence

The word:	Closer look at the kanji:	B = Beginner | I = Intermediate | A = Advanced
証拠隠滅 shou ko in metsu destruction of evidence	証拠 shou ko evidence, proof 隠滅 in metsu destuction 証 shou 拠 ko 隠 in or kakureru conceal, hide 滅 metsu destroy, ruin	保険証 ho ken shou - insurance card [A] 証人 shou nin - witness [I] 隠れる kakureru - to hide, hidden [I] 隠れん坊 kakuren bou - hide and go seek game [I] 隠密 on mitsu - a spy [A]

The document is said to have contained sensitive information on the whereabouts of Poohs honey...

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SUGGESTED USAGE: Wait until someone uses the shredder at the office and then announce to everyone, 証拠隠滅 The shredder scene is most effective, however there are other possible applications. Take, for example, the taking out of trash, the tossing of logs on the fire, being asked, "Do you have any WHITE OUT?," and an open mouth ready to take a bite of food.

難攻不落の要塞 Impregnable Fortress

難攻不落の要塞 impregnable fortress

The word:	Closer look at the kanji:	B = Beginner | I = Intermediate | A = Advanced
難攻不落の要塞 nan kou fu raku no you sai impregnable fortress	難 nan difficult, hard 攻 kou attack 不 fu non, negative, bad 落 raku fall, drop 要塞 you sai fortress, a stronghold	避難 hi nan - to take refuge, evacuate, run for cover [A] 攻撃 kou geki - attack, an offense [I] 不公平 fu kou hei - unfairness, injustice [I] 落ちる ochiru - to fall, drop [B] サルも木から落ちる saru mo ki kara ochiru - Even monkeys fall from trees (J Proverb - no ones perfect) [I]

Actually... I had a key.

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SUGGESTED USAGE: ブーさんは、難攻不落の要塞を建てたつもりだったが、それはわらで作ってあったので、狼に簡単に吹き飛ばされてしまった。 bu-san wa nan kou fu raku no you sai o tateta tsumori datta ga, sore wa wara de tsukutte atta node, ookami ni kantan ni fuki tobasarete shimatta. Mr. Bu intended to create an impregnable fortress, but the straw house he built was easily blown down by the big, bad wolf.

ABOUT SUGGESTED USAGE:

ブーさん bu-san - Mr. Bu- BU is the sound pigs make to Japanese ears
建てたつもり tateta tsumori - intended to build TSUMORI means a show of intent
だったが datta ga - was... but, DATTA is the simple past of DESU; GA is a contrasting but
それは sore wa - as for that means as for everything just mentioned
わら wara - straw
で de - by means of it was made WITH straw
作ってあったので tsukutte atta node - because it was made the NODE means because of this situation the following occured...
狼に ookami ni - for the wolf the NI here is used to direct the attention to the wolf
簡単に kantan ni - easily the NI makes this an adverb and not just easy
吹き飛ばされてしまった fuki tobasarete shimatta - was unfortunately blown down 吹き飛ばされて is made up of two words 吹く to blow and 飛ばす to fly, together they mean blow down.

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Quick lesson: Examples of using the に to make an adverb form out of some adjective would be: 簡単 kantan - easy Add に 簡単に kantan ni easily 急 kyuu sudden 急に kyuu ni - suddenly 楽 raku - easy (this one is similar to kantan, but also implies comfort in doing something) 楽に raku ni - easily 静か shizuka - quiet 静かに shizuka ni - quietly I read the に is added to adjectives imported from China. For other adjectives you make the く form: よく出来ました。 yoku dekimashita. (You did well)

顔面蒼白 Pale Face

顔面蒼白 face becoming white or pale because of a sudden fear or shock

The word:	Closer look at the kanji:	B = Beginner | I = Intermediate | A = Advanced
顔面蒼白 (ganmen (face) souhaku (pale, blue & white)) face becoming white or pale because of a sudden fear or shock	顔 kao, gan face 面 men face, surface 蒼 sou pale, blue 白 haku white	笑顔 e gao - smiling face (smiling) [B] 似顔 ni gao - portrait, likeness [I] 仮面 ka men - mask [B] 面白い omo shiroi - interesting [B] 白熊 shiro kuma - polar (white) bear [B]

The lizard is no match for the muscular bear...

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SUGGESTED USAGE: ゴジラは熊のプーさんの筋肉を見て、顔面蒼白になった。 gojira wa kuma no pu-san no kinniku wo mite, ganmensouhaku ni natta. Upon seeing Winnie the Poohs muscles, Godzillas face paled.

ABOUT SUGGESTED USAGE:

ゴジラ gojira - Godzilla The Japanese gojira comes from gorira (gorilla) and kujira (whale)
熊のプーさん kuma no pu-san - Winnie the Pooh
筋肉 kin niku - muscles
見て mite - see and... from: 見る miru - to see
になった ni natta - became a form of なる naru to become

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