noun:

• key (to understanding); point (e.g. of an argument) ➜ 捉えどころのない

noun:

• inviting another to one's home, office, etc.; the trouble of coming (going) [literal] - polite language

noun / ~する noun:

• paying to get someone (esp. a geisha, prostitute, etc.) out of bondage

noun:

• useless employees (shunted off by a window to pass their remaining time until retirement)

noun:

• capital letter
• first character of a dictionary entry
• matrix (printing)
• kanji corresponding to furigana

noun:

• wharf roach (species of isopod closely related to the sea slater; Ligia exotica)

noun:

• stealthy steps
• spurt to overtake a leading horse just before the finish line

noun / ~の noun:

• atavism; throwback; reappearance of an earlier characteristic; skipping a generation; reversion to ancestral type

expression / godan ~る verb:

• to improve one's skill (esp. at calligraphy or drinking larger amounts of alcohol) - idiom

noun:

• thin strip of wood smeared with sulfur, used to light a fire

noun:

• popularly accepted "on" reading of a kanji (as opposed to those derived from Chinese)

noun:

• seeds
• producer-driven solutions; ideas, products, services, etc. proposed by a company to consumers

expression / noun:

• coming to nothing ➜ 水泡
• bubble on the surface of water
• something that is short-lived

noun:

• rematch (e.g. in sumo when the match is too close to decide)

noun:

• chart used to keep track of a wrestler's records during the tournament - Sumo term

noun:

• grand champion considered to be truly great, usually with over 10 makuuchi tournament wins - Sumo term

expression / godan ~す verb:

• to have training bouts with one's junior during practice (of a senior wrestler) - Sumo term

noun / ~する noun:

• change in mentality; changing one's way of thinking; adjusting psychologically to shifting circumstances - four character idiom

noun:

• a good chance coming along; the time has come (for, to, when...); opportunity knocking - four character idiom

expression:

• not able to escape an urgent problem without making some sacrifice

noun:

• money needed to buy a geisha or prostitute out of bondage ➜ 身請け

noun:

• type of soft Japanese confectionery made with rice flour (somewhat similar to Turkish delight)

noun:

• type of soft Japanese confectionery made with rice flour (somewhat similar to Turkish delight) - orig. written as 牛皮 ➜ 求肥飴

expression:

• cannot live even a minute without someone or something; meaning the world to one

noun:

• hybrid mulberry tree used to make Japanese paper (Broussonetia kazinoki x papyrifera)