Proverbs

Traditional sayings that express a lesson or a truth in a few words.

• Four-character idioms
• Proverbs
• Idioms

934 results

• その罪を憎んでその人を憎まずそのつみをにくんでそのひとをにくまずcondemn the offense, but not the offender, detest the sin, but weep for the sinner
• 猫耳を洗うと雨が降るねこみみをあらうとあめがふるif a cat washes its ears, rain is coming
• 猫が顔を洗うと雨が降るねこがかおをあらうとあめがふるif a cat washes its face, rain is coming
• 子供騒げば雨が降るこどもさわげばあめがふるif the kids make a racket outside, there will be rain
• 腹の皮が突っ張れば目の皮がたるむはらのかわがつっぱればめのかわがたるむone becomes sleepy when one's stomach is full, full stomach, sleepy head
• 小便一町糞一里しょうべんいっちょうくそいちりif you visit the toilet while traveling, you will fall behind your fellow travelers
• ふぐは食いたし命は惜ししふぐはくいたしいのちはおししhoney is sweet, but the bee stings
• 臭い物に蝿がたかるくさいものにはえがたかるflies are attracted to foul smells, ruffians flock together
• 臭いもの身知らずくさいものみしらずit's hard to notice one's own faults
• 子供の喧嘩に親が出るこどものけんかにおやがでるwhen kids get in a fight, their parents come to their aid, yelping curs will raise mastiffs
• 坊主丸儲けぼうずまるもうけa monk's earnings are pure profit (due to needing no capital and having no expenses)
• 隗より始めよかいよりはじめよstart with the first step, he who first suggests it should be the first to do it遠大なことを望むのなら、まず手近なところから始めるとうまくいくものだ。 言い出した者から、率先して挑戦・実践すべきである。
• 油断は禁物ゆだんはきんもつbe on your guard, negligence is the enemy
• お客様は神様おきゃくさまはかみさまthe customer is always right, the customer is king
• 泣く子と地頭には勝てないなくことじとうにはかてないyou cannot win against someone who doesn't listen to reason, you can't fight City Hall
• いい後は悪いいいあとはわるいafter the good comes the bad
• 駟も舌に及ばずしもしたにおよばずrumors travel faster than a four-horse carriage, a word once uttered cannot be recalled
• 卑下も自慢の中ひげもじまんのうちtaking pride in one's humility is a form of bragging, he that humbleth himself wishes to be exalted, too much humility is pride
• 罪を憎んで人を憎まずつみをにくんでひとをにくまずcondemn the offense, but not the offender
• 問うは一度の恥、問わぬは末代の恥とうはいちどのはじ、とわぬはまつだいのはじbetter to ask and be embarrassed than not ask and never know
• 日光を見ない中は結構と言うなにっこうをみないうちはけっこうというなsee Nikko and die
• 立っているものは親でも使えたっているものはおやでもつかえwhen dealing with urgent business, make use of whoever is handy
• 先のことは分からないさきのことはわからないone never knows (what will happen), there's no telling (what the future holds)
• 百日の説法屁一つひゃくにちのせっぽうへひとつsingle mistake which ruins all one's hard work, one blunder rendering a long period of effort useless
• 袖すり合うも多生の縁そですりあうもたしょうのえんa meeting by chance is preordained
• 春宵一刻値千金しゅんしょういっこくあたいせんきんa moment of time in a spring evening is worth a thousand pieces of gold
• 理屈と膏薬はどこへでもつくりくつとこうやくはどこへでもつくone can give a plausible argument for anything
• 下手な鉄砲も数撃てば当たるへたなてっぽうもかずうてばあたるeven the unskilled can succeed by a fluke given enough tries
• 下手な鉄砲も数撃ちゃ当たるへたなてっぽうもかずうちゃあたるeven the unskilled can succeed by a fluke given enough tries
• 蛇に噛まれて朽ち縄に怖じるへびにかまれてくちなわにおじるonce bitten twice shy, to become over cautious from a bad experience
• 疑わしきは罰せずうたがわしきはばっせずwe are innocent until proven guilty, suspicion alone is not grounds for punishment, in dubio pro reo被告人の行為について、疑わしいというだけで明確な証拠がない場合は無罪となるという原則。
• 蟹は甲羅に似せて穴を掘るかにはこうらににせてあなをほるto each their own, different strokes for different folks, cut your coat to suit your cloth
• あの声で蜥蜴食らうか時鳥あのこえでとかげくらうかほととぎすdon't judge a book by its cover
• 子で子にならぬほととぎすこでこにならぬほととぎすno matter how lovingly raised, a foster child is not actually one's biological child
• 豚もおだてりゃ木に登るぶたもおだてりゃきにのぼるflattery will motivate anyone, flattery can do wondersおだてられて気分を良くすれば、つまらない人間でも能力以上の働きをすること。
• 鰯の頭も信心からいわしのあたまもしんじんからfaith is mysterious, faith is weird一旦信じてしまえば、どんなものでもありがたく思えるということ。江戸期、節分に鬼除けのため、玄関先に鰯の頭を吊るす習慣があり、それに由来するという説が有力。
• 起きて半畳寝て一畳おきてはんじょうねていちじょうone should be satisfied without desiring more wealth and rank than necessary
• 禍福は糾える縄のごとしかふくはあざなえるなわのごとしfortune and misfortune are intertwined, fortune and misfortune come by turns, good luck and bad luck alternate (like the strands of a rope), good and bad fortune are next-door neighbours
• 一円を笑う者は一円に泣くいちえんをわらうものはいちえんになくtake care of the penny
• お神酒上がらぬ神はないおみきあがらぬかみはないeven the gods drink sake, there's nothing wrong with drinking
• 門前の小僧もんぜんのこぞうyou learn, without realising it, from what is around you
• 蝙蝠も鳥のうちこうもりもとりのうちcapable or not, we are all in the same boat
• 七度尋ねて人を疑えななたびたずねてひとをうたがえsearch thoroughly for something lost before you suspect someone of stealing it, be on sure ground before you accuse someone
• 非理法権天ひりほうけんてんright triumphs over wrong, law triumphs over right, power triumphs over law, heaven triumphs over power, no man can oppose the divine
• 下衆の後知恵げすのあとぢえhindsight is 20-20 (even for a fool), an afterwit is everybody's wit
• 桑田変じて滄海となるそうでんへんじてそうかいとなるthe world is a scene of constant changes世の中の移り変わりが激しいこと。
• 若い時の苦労は買ってもせよわかいときのくろうはかってもせよspare no effort while you are young, heavy work in youth is quiet rest in old age
• 桜切る馬鹿、梅切らぬ馬鹿さくらきるばか、うめきらぬばかonly an idiot prunes cherry trees and only an idiot does not prune plum trees
• 葷酒山門に入るを許さずくんしゅさんもんにいるをゆるさずbringing pungent vegetables or liquor inside the temple is prohibited
• 吐いた唾は飲めぬはいたつばはのめぬwords once spoken cannot be taken back
• 花は桜木、人は武士はなはさくらぎ、ひとはぶしthe best flowers are the cherry blossoms, the best individuals are the samurai, as the cherry blossom is first among flowers, so is the warrior first among men
• 山中の賊を破るは易く心中の賊を破るは難しさんちゅうのぞくをやぶるはやすくしんちゅうのぞくをやぶるはかたしit's hard to discipline one's mind
• 明けない夜はないあけないよるはないevery night comes to an end, every night sees a dawn, this too shall pass, the darkest hour is just before the dawn
• 塞翁が馬さいおうがうまthe future is unpredictable, inscrutable are the ways of heaven, the irony of fate一時の幸・不幸は、それを原因として、すぐに逆の立場に変わりうるのであって、軽率に一喜一憂すべきではないということ。「人間万事塞翁が馬」、「万事塞翁が馬」とも。
• 泥棒を捕らえて縄を綯うどろぼうをとらえてなわをなうstarting something in the eleventh hour, have not thy cloak to make when it begins to rain, don't lock the stable door after the horse has been stolen, braiding the rope only after the thief is caught事態が起こってから、慌てて対処すること。
• 日々是好日にちにちこれこうじつevery day is a good day, enjoy every day
• 白駒の隙を過ぐるが如しはっくのげきをすぐるがごとしtime flies
• 孤掌鳴らし難しこしょうならしがたしone cannot live solely by oneself, one cannot accomplish anything solely by oneself
• 親の欲目と他人の僻目おやのよくめとたにんのひがめparents overvaluing their own children but looking down on others'
• 巧詐は拙誠に如かずこうさはせっせいにしかずbetter shoddy and sincere than clever and deceptive巧みに詐ることは、拙くとも誠実であることには及ばない。