expression:

• things depend on how you use them; all things have their uses when they are used in the right way - proverb

noun:

• tea ceremony stand with an enclosed shelf (invented by Takeno Jouou)
• small cupboard or closed shelf on the side of a tokonoma ➜ 袋戸棚

expression:

• actio libera in causa; manufacturing the conditions of one's own defence (e.g. getting drunk in order to commit a crime)

noun:

• golden spadefish (Platax boersii, species of Indo-West Pacific spadefish found in Indonesia, New Guinea, and the Philippines); Boer's batfish

noun:

• the Four Home Provinces (Yamato, Yamashiro, Settsu, and Kawachi); obsolete in 757 when Izumi was established as a separate province from Kawachi - archaism ➜ 五畿内

noun:

• broken windows theory; criminological theory stating that serious crime can be prevented by maintaining the good physical condition of an urban environment

noun:

• driving away moles by hitting the ground with straw bundles prepared by children (esp. as an annual event on January 15th)

noun:

• dried small sardines, etc. used to make fish stock ➜ 煮干し
• person in bank transfer scam whose role it is to withdraw the cash - slang

proper noun:

• faithful dog Hachiko; Akita dog that waited every day at Shibuya station for the return of his owner (1923-1935)

ichidan verb / transitive:

• to dig down; to delve into; to get to the bottom of (a matter); to investigate further

godan ~く verb / intransitive verb:

• to stick (to); to cling (to)
• to stay (e.g. in the office)

godan ~る verb / intransitive verb:

• to pretend to be tough; to put on a brave front; to whistle in the dark; to bluff

expression / godan ~く verb:

• to set forth; to put forward; to present for consideration; to explain the facts of life; to preach

noun:

• weather of the four seasons (warmth of spring, heat of summer, cool of autumn, and cold of winter)

noun / ~する noun:

• moving (location, with the times, etc.); change; transition
• metastasis; spread - Medicine term
• transition (e.g phase transition) - Physics term ➜ 相転移
• transfer (of learning)
• transference (in psychoanalysis)

expression:

• from right to left; in one ear and out the other
• nice and quick; with speed and address; without further ado

noun / ~する noun:

• final coat (of paint, plaster, varnish, etc.); finish; glazing
• adding more of the same (of something negative, e.g. shame) ➜ 恥の上塗り【はじのうわぬり】

noun:

• mess; sorry state; plight; sad sight - derogatory term

suffix:

• -ways; -wards - indicates direction
• in the act of ...; just as one is ... - after the -masu stem of a verb
• manner of ...; way of ... - after the -masu stem of a verb ➜ 様【さま】

noun:

• first flower of the season or year; first flowering on a plant
• first menstruation ［はつはな］
• woman who has just reached adulthood ［はつはな］

noun:

• gait; manner of walking; footwork (e.g. in sport)
• characteristic way of moving, keeping the center of gravity low (centre) - Sumo term

noun:

• Atypus karschi (Asian species of mygalomorph spider) ［土蜘蛛］ ➜ 地蜘蛛
• tsuchigumo (people of ancient Japan who were not subjects of the Yamato court)

expression / ~する verb (spec.):

• to have readied a bow and stand at ready; to watch for an opportunity; to wait until the time is ripe ➜ 満を持す

noun:

• ignorance of Jōdo Shinshū practitioners (who only chant the Namu Amida Butsu and have little knowledge of other parts of Buddhism) - derogatory term

expression:

• you cannot excuse a bad deed with a petty act of benevolence; steal a pig and give the feet for alms [literal] - proverb

noun:

• flower; blossom; bloom; petal
• cherry blossom
• beauty
• blooming (esp. of cherry blossoms)
• ikebana ➜ 生け花
• hanafuda - abbreviation ➜ 花札
• (the) best - usu. as 〜が花 ➜ 言わぬが花

~の noun:

• glorious; lovely