Skip to content
Tenkai
Romaji on
For true beginners
Log in
EN
日本語
Browse
Quiz
Review
Exam
Proverbs & idioms
198 entries
Japanese proverbs (ことわざ), four-character idioms (四字熟語), and idioms — from JMdict.
Proverbs
Four-character idioms
Idioms
Theme:
All themes
Animal
198
Body
462
Nature
244
Food
106
Emotion
100
Money
58
Time
77
Number
592
Color
85
Search
尾ひれをつける
おひれをつける
to exaggerate; to embellish (a story, rumor, etc.)
山をかける
やまをかける
to speculate; to make an educated guess; to gamble (e.g. on getting the right questions)
山を張る
やまをはる
to speculate; to make an educated guess; to gamble (e.g. on getting the right questions)
市に虎を放つ
いちにとらをはなつ
to let a fox into the henhouse; to do something dangerous; to let loose a tiger in the marketplace
張子の虎
はりこのとら
paper tiger; someone (or something) who is all bark and no bite; man of straw
後門の虎、前門の狼
こうもんのとら、ぜんもんのおおかみ
between the devil and the deep sea; out of the frying pan into the fire; a tiger at the back gate, a wolf at the front gate
Previous
Page 2 / 4
Next
手が込む
てがこむ
to be intricate; to be elaborate; to be complicated; to be complex
手につかない
てにつかない
unable to focus on ... (due to being preoccupied with something else); unable to concentrate on ...; unable to settle down to ...
手を挙げる
てをあげる
to surrender; to become better (at something); to improve; to throw one's hat in the ring; to volunteer; to indicate one intends to participate
手を携えて
てをたずさえて
(acting) together; jointly; cooperatively; in partnership; side by side; holding hands
捕らぬ狸の皮算用
とらぬたぬきのかわざんよう
counting one's chickens before they're hatched; counting raccoon dog skins before they have been caught
掃き溜めに鶴
はきだめにつる
a jewel in a dunghill
暗がりから牛を引き出す
くらがりからうしをひきだす
to drive black hogs in the dark; to be unable to distinguish one thing from another; to come out from the darkness with a cow
最後っ屁
さいごっぺ
final desperate tactic
最後屁
さいごべ
final desperate tactic
月とスッポン
つきとすっぽん
two things that are superficially similar but completely different; night and day; chalk and cheese; the Moon and a turtle
服を着る
ふくをきる
to be the personification of
木から落ちた猿
きからおちたさる
person who has lost something they used to rely on; a monkey fallen from the tree
木に竹を接ぐ
きにたけをつぐ
to sew a fox's skin to the lion's; to graft a bamboo shoot on a tree
木に縁って魚を求む
きによってうおをもとむ
to be unable to accomplish something because one has chosen the wrong method; to ask for the impossible; to look for fish by climbing a tree
木に縁りて魚を求む
きによりてうおをもとむ
to be unable to accomplish something because one has chosen the wrong method; to ask for the impossible; to look for fish by climbing a tree
業を煮やす
ごうをにやす
to lose one's temper; to lose patience; to have enough; to be exasperated; to become irritated; to get fed up
横串
よこぐし
coordination across separate sectors (of an organization, division, etc.); cross-boundary linkage; horizontal integration
死んだ魚の目
しんださかなのめ
empty eyes; thousand-yard stare; blank glaze; expressionless look; eyes of a dead fish
毒をもって毒を制す
どくをもってどくをせいす
fight fire with fire; set a thief to catch a thief; fight one evil with another
水を向ける
みずをむける
to try and draw someone out; to fish for information
水を得た魚
みずをえたうお
someone who is in their element; fish that has found water
水母の骨
くらげのほね
something that one would not expect to exist; something exceedingly rare; jellyfish bones
水魚の交わり
すいぎょのまじわり
close friendship; inseparable relationship
池魚の殃
ちぎょのわざわい
collateral damage; getting embroiled in someone else's dispute; having a fire spread to one's own house
沐猴にして冠す
もっこうにしてかんす
to only look the part (but otherwise be wholly unsuited for it); a monkey wearing a crown
波紋を呼ぶ
はもんをよぶ
to cause a stir; to have repercussions; to generate controversy
泣いて馬謖を斬る
ないてばしょくをきる
being just before one is generous; punishing someone you love or value to uphold the rules; shedding tears while beheading Ma Su
泣き面に蜂
なきつらにはち
making matters worse; adding insult to injury; bees to a tearful face
海のものとも山のものともつかない
うみのものともやまのものともつかない
neither fish nor fowl; hard to predict; up in the air; unclear
海の物とも山の物とも判らない
うみのものともやまのものともわからない
neither fish nor fowl; hard-to-predict
海老で鯛を釣る
えびでたいをつる
to throw in a shrimp and pull out a whale; to use a sprat to catch a mackerel; to get big returns on a small investment
涙をのむ
なみだをのむ
to swallow one's tears; to choke back one's tears; to hold back one's disappointment; to suppress one's mortification
渇に臨みて井を掘る
かつにのぞみていをほる
to fail to make timely preparations; to not dig a well until one is thirsty
漁夫の利
ぎょふのり
profiting while others fight; fisherman's profit
火の車
ひのくるま
desperate financial situation; dire straits
火事場の馬鹿力
かじばのばかぢから
extraordinary strength displayed in an emergency; surge of power beyond one's normal capacity; great strength exerted at risk
無常の風
むじょうのかぜ
wind of impermanence (that ends people lives, like the wind scattering a flower's petals)
牛にひかれて善光寺参り
うしにひかれてぜんこうじまいり
doing or receiving something good by accident or through the invitation of someone else; being pulled to the Zenkoji temple by a cow
牛の歩み
うしのあゆみ
snail's pace; ox walk
牛を馬に乗り換える
うしをうまにのりかえる
to go from (using, etc.) something bad to something good; to change (from riding) a cow to (riding) a horse
犬が西向きゃ尾は東
いぬがにしむきゃおはひがし
that goes without saying; water is wet; when a dog turns west, its tail turns east
犬と猿
いぬとさる
cats and dogs (as an example of a bad relationship); dogs and monkeys
犬に論語
いぬにろんご
wasting one's breath (trying to explain something); (reading) the Analects of Confucius to a dog
犬の川端歩き
いぬのかわばたあるき
window-shopping without any money; going out and returning without having bought or eaten anything; dog's walk on the riverbank