noun:

• in calligraphy, a style of holding the brush between the thumb and index finger ➜ 双鉤法

noun:

• in calligraphy, the four important tools of brush, ink stone, ink stick, and paper - four character idiom

noun:

• metal rod in a wooden plane which holds the chip breaker against the blade

noun / adjectival noun:

• great inconvenience; great deal of trouble; big nuisance; royal pain in the behind

expression / godan ~る verb:

• to sit on the edge of one's seat; to be in breathless suspense

noun:

• person in charge of preparing food for rikishi (usually performed by low-ranking rikishi) - Sumo term

noun:

• "sushi mat" (bamboo mat used in food preparation, especially to roll makizushi) ➜ 巻寿司

noun:

• stone statue of Jizo (often found along roads) ➜ 地蔵
• taciturn person; person uninterested in romance

noun / ~する noun:

• studying in the morning (by oneself); brief "self-study" period before morning classes begin

noun:

• Lorelei (Loreley); Rhine maiden who lured sailors to their doom
• rock in the Rhine

noun:

• general term for the nine holes in the body of humans and other mammals

expression / noun:

• in front of one's eyes; just nearby; within a stone's throw

noun:

• Copper Age (period in which metal tools started to be used alongside stone tools)

noun:

• member of a (school) club who does not partake in the club's activities - humorous term ➜ 帰宅部

noun:

• bing-bong bang-bong (Big Ben chimes, used as a bell in Japanese schools) ➜ 予鈴

noun:

• shift away from rice consumption; consumers losing interest in eating rice

noun:

• ritsu scale (anhemitonic pentatonic scale primarily used in gagaku: re, mi, so, la, ti)

noun:

• Purple Forbidden Enclosure (group of constellations in the northern sky associated with the emperor) - abbreviation ➜ 紫微垣

noun:

• Purple Forbidden Enclosure (group of constellations in the northern sky associated with the emperor)

noun:

• statue of a figure sitting contemplatively in the half lotus position (often of Maitreya) - Buddhism term ➜ 弥勒菩薩

noun:

• mounted bandit (esp. historically in NE China from the end of the Qing dynasty)

prefix:

• august (in ref. to the emperor or the gods); imperial; divine - honorific language

expression:

• with great vigour; in leaps and bounds; with the force of surging waves [literal]

noun:

• big moment (e.g. performance, in the spotlight); gala occasion; (on the) world stage ➜ 晴れ舞台

noun:

• paper (in rock, paper, scissors game) ➜ パー・じゃん拳

noun / adjectival noun:

• disappearing completely; coming to nought; becoming worthless
• foolishness; stupidity