in the first place;  to begin with;  after all;  anyway;  beginning;  start
 country;  state;  region;  national government;  central government;  home (i.e. hometown, home country); (arch.)  province (of Japan)
 house;  residence;  family;  household;  lineage;  family name
 indicates direct object of action;  indicates subject of causative expression;  indicates an area traversed;  indicates time (period) over which action takes place;  indicates point of departure or separation of action;  indicates object of desire, like, hate, etc.
 protection;  safeguard;  guardianship;  preservation;  conservation
 maintenance;  preservation;  improvement
 indicates sentence topic;  indicates contrast with another option (stated or unstated);  adds emphasis
 military force;  force of arms;  strength of an army
 at (place, time);  in;  to (direction, state);  toward;  for (purpose);  because of (reason);  for
 to be;  to exist;  to have;  to be located;  to be equipped with;  to happen
 indicates possessive;  nominalizes verbs and adjectives;  substitutes for "ga" in subordinate phrases;  (at sentence-end, falling tone) indicates a confident conclusion;  (at sentence-end) indicates emotional emphasis;  (at sentence-end, rising tone) indicates question
 prosperity and decay;  prosperity and decline;  rise and fall;  ups and downs;  ebb and flow;  waxing and waning
 righteousness;  justice;  right
 rise and fall;  ups and downs;  welfare;  vicissitudes
 to become;  to get;  to result in;  to turn out;  to consist of;  to be composed of;  to be completed
 thing;  matter;  incident;  occurrence;  circumstances;  situation;  work
 bento;  Japanese box lunch;  Oversight Department;  division of the daijokan under the ritsuryo system responsible for controlling central and provincial governmental offices
 public opinion;  popular voice;  public sentiment;  consensus
 to be affected;  to be influenced;  to be concerned with;  to have to do with;  to stick to (opinions)
 wholehearted;  earnest;  determined;  intent;  single-minded;  straightforward
 my;  one's own;  I ...;  one ...
 loyalty;  allegiance;  fidelity
 to protect;  to guard;  to defend;  to keep (i.e. a promise);  to abide (by the rules);  to observe
 morality;  righteousness;  meaning;  teachings;  doctrine;  nonconsanguineous relationship (i.e. of in-laws)
 in comparison to;  rather than
 heavy;  weighty;  heavy (feeling);  depressed;  slow;  sluggish;  important (position, responsibility, etc.)
 death;  decease; (arch.)  death penalty (by strangulation or decapitation);  (an) out
 something extremely light;  feather of a large bird
 purpose for which money is spent;  the way money is spent;  how goods are used
 to do;  to carry out;  to cause to become;  to make (into);  to serve as;  to act as;  to wear (clothes, a facial expression, etc.)
 live coals (for firelighting);  cause (of disturbance, conflict, etc.);  trigger
 indicates sentence subject (occasionally object);  indicates possessive (esp. in literary expressions);  but;  however;  regardless of;  whether (or not)
 to smoke;  to smoulder;  to be sooty;  to be smoke-stained;  to smoulder (e.g. a dispute);  to smolder
 Shōwa era (1926.12.25-1989.1.7);  reminiscent of the Shōwa era;  Shōwa- nostalgic;  old-fashioned
 year;  counter for years (e.g. of an era), grades (e.g. school);  period of an apprentice's contract (usu. ten years)
 behind closed doors;  behind-the-scenes;  (under the veil of) secrecy
 training;  education;  development;  cultivation