A Dictionary of Japanese Idioms

by William de Lange, Hiromi Miyagi-Lusthaus (Editor)

What student of Japanese has not grappled with the amazing diversity and elusive nuances of its idioms? One would not want to confuse, for example, ki ga mawaru (to be considerate) with ki o mawasu (to be suspicious). And it would be useful to know whether your boss is really hara ga tatsu (angry) or merely ki ga tatsu (irritable). Indeed, even a single idiom can have a bewildering number of meanings depending on context; te o ireru, for instance, can mean fixing up (as a house), asking someone to investigate secretly, or making a raid. This dictionary offers the most comprehensive compilation and English translation of those idiomatic expressions that so enrich the Japanese language but fail to find their way into conventional dictionaries. It presents more than 6000 idiomatic phrases under 1000 main entries, including several thousands of idioms never presented and explained in English before. Multiple sample sentences are given for each entry, and furigana allows even beginning students to pronounce correctly and to use the expressions immediately. A thumb index and two-color printing, with all kanji and kana in red, make entries exceptionally easy to access.

Genres: Reference, Language

208 pages, Paperback

First published July 10, 2006

About the author

William de lange is the author of books, ebooks and apps on Japan's traditional culture, from history, samurai culture, to arts & crafts, and language dictionaries.

Bio: William de lange was born in 1964 in Naarden, the Netherlands to Dutch and English parents. In the late 1980s, he aborted his English studies to embark on a journey that eventually led him to Japan, where he supported himself by making traditional Japanese scrolls and writing articles for the Japan Times Weekly. Following his graduation from Leiden University in 1994, he lived in Japan for the remaining decade, studying the art of Japanese fencing under Akita Moriji sensei, eighth dan master of the Shinkage-ryu. Since then he has written a large number of books on Japanese history and culture, including a highly acclaimed biography of Miyamoto Musashi. He is currently working on a history of the Yagyu clan.

William de Lange lives and works in the Netherlands and loves to travel, enjoying good food and wine with the love of his life.

Reviews

[Marija S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The description of this book might be misleading; if you are looking for sayings in Japanese, it is a good resource. It does not, however, contain many yojijukugo (four-character idioms) and it could use a glossary since the entries are listed alphabetically, in Japanese, making searches for specific proverbs impossible unless one is already familiar with their original versions.

Since this is the most conclusive list I have found so far, I am giving it the top grade.