Two weeks ago, we came to know 露 (RO, RŌ, tsuyu) as “dew.” So when I saw 露 in the following compound, my mind naturally turned to “dew”:

流露

After all, 流 (RYŪ, naga(reru)) means “to flow,” and dew could easily flow. But in this case, 露 means “to expose”! Here’s the word again:

流露 (ryūro: to disclose, reveal, express)     to flow + to expose

In fact, 露 often conveys a sense of exposure. That was actually our first taste of this kanji two weeks ago, when I introduced a compound about introductions:

披露 (hirō: announcement, introduction)     to reveal + to expose

We also knew 露 as “to expose” back in March, when we considered this expression:

秘密を暴露する (himitsu o bakuro suru: to betray a secret)
     to keep secret + secret + to expose + to expose

Even as early as February, we had a passing acquaintance with 露 as “to expose” in this phrase:

現実暴露 (genjitsu bakuro: disillusionment)
     reality (1st 2 chars.) + to expose + to expose

So it seems we’ve had a long-standing relationship with 露 and particularly with 暴露 (bakuro: to expose, bring to light), a somewhat covert relationship that’s only now being exposed (暴露されている).

Sample Sentences with 暴露 …

Arawa

Thus far, we’ve seen 露 as “to expose” when this kanji shows up in compounds and has the on-yomi of RO or RŌ. If you find 露 standing alone, it’s natural to read it as tsuyu, “dew.” But you could also use another kun-yomi—arawa. And this yomi gets us right back to the “exposure” theme:

露 (arawa: exposed, scanty, bare, unconcealed, naked)

If you tack on a little hiragana, you can go public with your exposure:

露に (arawani: openly, publicly, frankly, expressly, overtly)

And adding する to that enables you to lay people bare, along with their foibles, secrets, and dirty deeds:

露にする (arawani suru: to lay bare, expose, reveal)

Sample Sentence with 露にする …

Confessions and Boasts

Have all these words about exposure inspired you to release your innermost feelings? No? Well, perhaps you need a final jolt of inspiration:

吐露 (toro: to express one’s mind, speak out)
     to confess + to expose

The first kanji also means “to spit, vomit, belch, tell (lies).” Hmm! Perhaps it’s no surprise, then, that this character breaks down as dirt + mouth. Along with the definitions of 吐, that combination gives us plenty of unpleasant graphic images to contemplate!

It’s certainly nicer to think of an oral outpouring as consisting of words. Here’s how a lovelorn person might shatter a long silence and express the deepest sentiments in her heart:

心情吐露 (shinjō toro: expression of one’s feelings; pouring out one’s heart)     heart + emotion + to confess + to expose

If a woman pours out her heart to a man, I hope he’s a kind, empathic sort, not someone prone to this behavior:

露悪 (roaku: boasting of one’s wickedness (or faults))
     to expose + evil

And if he does occasionally boast of his wickedness, let’s hope he doesn’t make it a habit, as this term implies:

露悪趣味 (roaku shumi: being apt to make a show of one’s faults; penchant for boasting of one’s faults; pretending to be worse than one really is)     to expose + evil + preference (last 2 chars.)

If you’re going to be a jerk, be a full-out jerk. Don’t just brag about it and not follow through! Sheesh!

Time for your Verbal Logic Quizzes!

Verbal Logic Quizzes …