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Japanese Idioms
The Japanese language is filled with idioms of all sorts, from classical references from ancient Chinese to modern colloquialisms used by college students and young salaryman. Whether you are traveling to Japan for fun or on business, or are living there, you'll find idioms indispensible to understanding and using the daily language. Browse below to find the ones you want or simply explore the many possible ways to express yourself in Japanese.
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蛙の面に水
[かえるのつらにみず, kaeru no tsura ni mizu] water on a duck’s back
顔がいい
[かおがいい, kao ga ii] be in good standing; have a good reputation
顔が利く
[かおがきく, kao ga kiku] have influence; be influential
顔が立ちません
[かおがたちません, kao ga tachimasen] have lost face
顔が立つ
[かおがたつ, kao ga tatsu] maintain one’s status; keep face
顔がつぶれる
[かおがつぶれる, kao ga tsubureru] lose status; have lost status
顔が広い
[かおがひろい, kao ga hiroi] know a lot of people; be widely known; have a large circle of acquaintances
顔が汚れる
[かおがよごれる, kao ga yogareru] lose status; lose all status
顔から日が出る
[かおからひがでる, kao kara hi ga deru] blush deeply; redden in the face
顔に泥を塗る
[かおにどろをぬる, kao ni doro o nuru] put to shame
顔の広い人
[かおのひろいひと, kao no hiroi hito] a person with many acquaintances
顔を売る
[かおをうる, kao o uru] become more popular; gain influence
顔を売れた人
[かおをうれたひと, kao o ureta hito] a well-known person
顔を貸す
[かおをかす, kao o kasu] assist someone in gaining status
顔を出す
[かおをだす, kao o dasu] come; arrive; appear; put in an appearance
顔を汚す
[かおをよごす, kao o yogosu] be ashamed
陰口をきく
[かげぐちをきく, kage-guchi o kiku] mutter darkly; backbite
火事後のポンプ
[かじあとのぽんぷ, kaji-ato no ponpu] something belated or unnecessary
火事後の用心
[かじあとのようじん, kaji-ato no joujin] be too late in doing something
火事場の泥簿
[かじばのどろぼ, kajiba no dorobou] a thief at the site of a disaster
風の便り
[かぜのたより, kaze no tayori] something heard as a rumor; something told by a "little bird"
肩が軽くなる
[かたがかるくなる, kata ga karuku naru] be relieved of a burden; releived of a responsibility
肩たたき
[かたたたき, kaka-tataki] pressuring employees to take early retirement
肩で風を切って歩く
[かたでかぜをきってあるく, kata de kaze o kitte aruku] swagger; strut along
肩を並べて走る
[かたをならべてはしる, kata o narabete hashiru] run neck and neck
肩を持つ
[かたをもつ, kata o motsu] support someone; side with someone
花鳥風月
[かちょうふうげつ, kachou-fuugetsu] expression of the traditional themes of natural beauty in Japanese esthetics
かっかする
[かっかする, kakka suru] be hot under the collar; be fuming (mad)
勝手にする
[かってにする, katte ni suru] do as one pleases; do as one likes
蚊の涙
[かのなみだ, ka no namida] something very small
兜を脱ぐ
[かぶとをぬぐ, kabuto o nugu] acknowledge defeat
痒い所に手が届かぬ
[かゆいところにてがとどかぬ, kayui tokoro n te ga todokanu] not know where the trouble is
体が続く
[からだがつづく, karada ga tsuzuku] stand the strain
がり勉
[がりべん, gariben] grind, hard period of study
(lit.: stiff/strict studying)
軽口をたたく
[かるぐちをたたく, karuguchi o tataku] speak unthinkingly
過労死
[かろうし, karoushi] sudden death caused by overwork and mental stress, typically occurring among middle-aged male corporate employees
かろうじて
[かろうじて, karoujite] just barely, narrowly, with difficulty
棺おけに片足をつっこむ
[かんおけにかたあしをつっこむ, kanoke ni kata-ashi o tsukkomu] have one foot in the grave
簡単のため
[かんたんのため, kantan no tame] for the sake of simplicity
勘のいい
[かんのいい, kan no ii] be quick to understand; be quick on the uptake; be quick to catch on
勘の悪い
[かんのわるい, kan no warui] be slow to understand; be slow on the uptake; be slow to catch on
看板持ち
[かんばんもち, kanban-mochi] flatterer; brown-noser
勘弁する
[かんべんする, kanben suru] lay off; leave it; let go; overlook