noun:

• smooth-hound (Mustelus mustelus, houndshark found in the Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean)

noun:

• Luvarus (sole genus of perciform fish in the family Luvaridae whose only member is the luvar)

noun:

• greater palace; area centered on the inner palace, home to various administrative bodies (in Heian period Kyoto) ➜ 内裏

noun:

• shingling using thick roof shingles; roof shingled in such a manner (usu. shrine buildings, noh stages, etc.) ➜ 栩板

noun:

• bodyguards in service of the shogun who would walk ahead of him on an outing (Edo period)

noun:

• tanbo art; using rice of various types and colours to create giant pictures in rice fields

noun:

• fruits left on a tree during winter (supposedly causing more fruits to appear in the next season) - archaism

noun:

• Washington Convention (i.e. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) ➜ ＣＩＴＥＳ

expression:

• pretending not to see something; turning a blind eye to; burying one's head in the sand ➜ 見て見ぬ振り

noun:

• wait for the middle tile of a three-in-a-row which will finish one's hand - Mahjong term

noun:

• wand used when preparing gruel for the 15th of the first month (said to cure sterility in women)

noun:

• feudal lord who did not leave his domains to meet the shogun in Kyoto (during the Muromachi period)

noun:

• misedashi; debut of an apprentice geisha; ceremony in which a shikomi becomes a maiko ➜ 仕込み【しこみ】・舞子【まいこ】

expression / noun:

• having one's own premises ➜ 部屋持ちの親方【へやもちのおやかた】
• Edo-period prostitute successful enough to have her own room in an establishment - abbr. of 部屋持ち女郎

expression:

• slow but steady wins the race; constant effort will result in success; constant dripping wears away a stone [literal] - proverb

noun:

• samya mandala (in Shingon); mandala where each deity is represented by an object (lotus flower, gem, sword, etc.) - Buddhism term ➜ 四種曼荼羅【ししゅまんだら】

noun:

• Twenty-Six Martyrs of Japan; group of Japanese and foreign Catholics who were crucified in 1597 at Nagasaki

noun:

• cloudiness; cloudy weather
• fog (on a mirror, glasses, etc.); cloud (e.g. in marble); blur; mist; shadow; dimness
• gloom; dejection

noun:

• navel; belly button
• protrusion or depression in the middle of an object ［へそ・ヘソ］
• center; centre; most important part; main point

noun:

• sukiyaki; thin slices of beef, cooked with various vegetables in a table-top cast-iron pan - Food term

noun:

• giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis)
• qilin (Chinese unicorn)
• Kirin (brand of beer) ［麒麟］
• horse that can ride 1000 ri in a day ［騏驎］ - archaism

noun:

• tyre chains; anti-skid device
• backup measure; taking entrance examination to a university in case one fails at other universities

noun:

• self-styled humanitarian; chivalrous person; persons acting under the pretence of chivalry who formed gangs and engaged in gambling ➜ 渡世人・男伊達・町奴

noun:

• type of sweet made with bean paste (local delicacy in Kyoto); cinnamon-seasoned cracknel (cookie)
• zigzag bridge

noun / suffix noun:

• company; association; society - abbreviation ➜ 会社
• regional Chinese god of the earth (or a village built in its honour)

counter / suffix:

• counter for companies, shrines, etc.