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Say Hello in Japanese No Matter What the Time of Day
Absolute Beginner Season 1
Learn how to greet someone both formally and informally
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Essential Idioms That Will Make You Sound Like a Native Speaker
15 words
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Word Image
Essential Idioms That Will Make You Sound Like a Native Speaker
15 words
neko o kaburu
猫をかぶる
(p)
pretend to be a nice person
Kare wa, jōshi no mae de wa itsumo neko o kaburu.
彼は、上司の前ではいつも猫をかぶる。
He always pretends to be a nice person in front of the boss.
hara ga tatsu
腹が立つ
(p)
get angry
Kare no shitsurei na taido ni hara ga tatta.
彼の失礼な態度に腹が立った。
I got angry at his rude attitude.
abura o uru
油を売る
(p)
loaf around
Kyō wa hayaku ie ni kaeritai node, koko de abura o utte iru hima wa nai.
今日は早く家に帰りたいので、ここで油を売っている暇はない。
I want to go home earlier, so I don't have a time to loaf around here.
me ga nai
目がない
(p)
be extremely fond of
Kēki ni me ga nai desu.
ケーキに目が無いです。
I'm extremely fond of cakes.
mimi ga itai
耳が痛い
(p)
it feels painful to hear of my failure
Jōshi ni, purojekuto no shippai o shitekisarete, mimi ga itai.
上司に、プロジェクトの失敗を指摘されて、耳が痛い。
It's painful to listen to the boss pointing out mistakes I made on the project.
suzume no namida
雀の涙
(p)
tiny amount
Watashi no kyūryō wa suzume no namida desu.
私の給料は雀の涙です。
My salary is really low.
kao kara hi ga deru
顔から火が出る
(p)
embarrassed
Tesuto de rei-ten o totte, kao kara hi ga deru omoi ga shita.
テストで0点を取って、顔から火が出る思いがした。
I'm so embarrassed that I got 0 points on the assignment.
mikka bōzu
三日坊主
(p)
person who quits things easily
Mikkabōzu de Nihongo no benkyō o yameta.
三日坊主で、日本語の勉強をやめた。
I stopped learning Japanese right away.
moto o toru
元を取る
(p)
recover a cost
Tabehōdai de, takusan tabete moto o totta.
食べ放題で、たくさん食べて元を取った。
At the all-you-can-eat buffet, I ate a lot to get a return on the price.
kubi o nagaku suru
首を長くする
(p)
eagerly look forward to
2020-nen no Tōkyō Orinpikku o kubi o nagaku shite matte iru.
2020年の東京オリンピックを首を長くして待っている。
I'm really looking forward to the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020.
neko no hitai
猫の額
(p)
narrow space
Watashi no apāto no heya wa, neko no hitai gurai semai desu.
私のアパートの部屋は、猫の額ぐらい狭いです。
My room in the apartment is really small.
mato o eru
的を射る
(p)
grasp the key point
Kanojo no shuchō wa mato o ite iru.
彼女の主張は的を射ている。
Her grasp of the key point is on target.
fune o kogu
船を漕ぐ
(p)
nod off
Shigoto chū ni, fune o koide shimatta.
仕事中に、船を漕いでしまった。
I was nodding off to sleep while working.
tenohira o kaesu
掌を返す
(p)
change one's attitude
Kyō, jōshi wa, tenohira o kaeshita yōni kigen ga ii desu.
今日、上司は、掌を返したように機嫌がいいです。
My boss is really in a good mood today although he usually is not.
saji o nageru
さじを投げる
(p)
give up
Kanojo ni nando setsumei shite mo, rikai shinai node, saji o nageta.
彼女に何度説明しても、理解しないので、さじを投げた。
I explained it to her many times, but she never understood. I gave up explaining.
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