expression:

• How can a small bird (a sparrow, a petty person) understand the aspirations of a great bird (a phoenix); Only a hero can understand a hero - four character idiom

adverbial noun / noun:

• limit; limits; bounds
• degree; extent; scope
• as far as possible; as much as possible; to the best of one's ability; very much
• unless (after neg. verb)
• the end; the last

suffix:

• as long as; only

expression:

• waiting for one hundred years for the waters of the Yellow River to clear; waiting in vain for an unlikely event; waiting for pigs to fly; When the sky falls, we shall catch larks - four character idiom

conjunction:

• but; however; though; nevertheless; still; yet; even so; also; as well

particle:

• even
• however; no matter how; even if; even though
• ... or something
• either ... or ...; neither ... nor ... - as 〜でも〜でも

prefix:

• pseudo-; quack; in-name-only - before an occupation, etc.
• for lack of anything better to do - before an occupation, etc. ➜ でもしか

ichidan verb / transitive:

• to bring near; to bring close; to let go near
• to associate with; to bring (people) together; to let come near (of a person)

godan ~る verb / transitive:

• to fall below (esp. figures: profits, unemployment rate, etc.); to be less than; to be lower than; to fall just short of; to be just under ➜ 上回る

noun:

• countries all over the world; all the countries of the world

noun:

• flowers reflected on a mirror and the moon reflected on the water's surface; something that is visible but having no substance; the subtle and profound beauty of poems that cannot be described in words - four character idiom

noun:

• Buddhist service in which the eight scrolls of the Lotus Sutra are read one scroll at a time (one morning and one evening reading each day for four days with a different reciter each time)

godan ~す verb / transitive:

• to eat up and spoil (e.g. crops); to eat away; to devour; to wolf down
• to eat a bit of everything
• to encroach upon; to take over; to steal (e.g. support)

godan ~る verb / intransitive verb:

• to be in full bloom; to blossom in full glory; to be in fullness of bloom

godan ~る verb / intransitive verb:

• to be shut; to close; to be closed - esp. 閉まる
• to be firm (of a body, face, etc.); to be well-knit ［締まる］
• to be locked
• to tighten; to be tightened
• to become sober; to become tense

godan ~る verb / intransitive verb:

• to arrive at (e.g. a decision); to reach (a stage); to attain
• to lead to (a place); to get to
• in the extreme case of - as ～に至っては
• to come; to arrive; to result in - archaism

godan ~る verb / intransitive verb:

• to succeed; to relieve; to replace - esp. 替わる, 替る
• to take the place of; to substitute for; to take over for; to represent; to hand over (telephone) - esp. 代わる, 代る
• to be exchanged; to change (places with); to switch - esp. 換わる, 換る

godan ~る verb / intransitive verb:

• to sound shrill (of a voice); to sound high-pitched and excited; to sound hollow
• to get excited; to become restless
• to be thrown too high; to come in high - Baseball term

noun:

• question (e.g. on a test); problem
• problem (e.g. societal, political); question; issue; subject (e.g. of research); case; matter
• question (i.e. doubt)
• public discussion; controversy
• trouble; problem; inconvenience; difficulty

ichidan verb / transitive:

• to read a kanji with a different pronunciation
• to load (e.g. data on a computer); to read
• to change the language or wording (of a provision, etc.); to apply a different term - Law term

expression / godan ~う verb:

• to have the (full, general) selection available; to have (a lineup) from A to Z; to have the full array of

noun:

• make-or-break game in a go or shogi tournament
• ozeki-ranked wrestler being in danger of losing his rank if he fails to win 8 or more bouts in a 15-day tournament - Sumo term

noun:

• two-sword school; style of fencing with one sword in each hand ➜ 二天一流
• liking both alcohol and sweets; person who likes both liquor and sweets
• bisexuality - colloquialism
• player who can play as both pitcher and fielder - Baseball term

expression:

• those who wish to rule the land must first cultivate their own characters, then manage their families, then govern their states; only then can they bring peace to the land (a mantra of Confucianism) - proverb

upper nidan verb (archaic) / intransitive verb:

• to pass through; to pass by; to go beyond - archaism ➜ 過ぎる【すぎる】
• to pass (i.e. of time); to elapse - archaism ➜ 過ぎる【すぎる】
• to have expired; to have ended; to be over - archaism ➜ 過ぎる【すぎる】
• to exceed; to surpass; to be above - archaism ➜ 過ぎる【すぎる】

noun:

• main fermenting mash (in production of sake or soy sauce); unrefined sake or soy sauce

noun or verb acting prenominally:

• unrefined (sake, soy sauce, etc.); rough

ichidan verb / transitive:

• to transfer (trains); to change (bus, train)
• to change one's mind; to move on to (e.g. a new love interest); to change methods; to change one's way of thinking

noun:

• Shinto ritual in which a shaman or priest soaks bamboo grass in boiling water and sprinkles the water on worshippers (originally a form of divination, later a purification ceremony, now primarily used to pray for good health) ➜ 巫女【みこ】