reader (person); person who reads the cards (in karuta games); composer (of a poem)
recommendation; endorsement
card to pick up (esp. in hyakunin isshu karuta, i.e. the card printed with the second half of a poem)
card to be read (e.g. in hyakunin isshu karuta, iroha karuta)
beanbag; beanbag juggling game; bobbling the ball
mature woman; middle-aged woman
ticket; token; label; tag; sign; card; playing card
banknote; bill; note; paper money
low birth; humble origin; lowly; base; vulgar
to disdain; to look down on; to make light of; to hold in contempt; to scorn; to despise
semi-transparent; translucent
monster; monstrosity; giant; influential figure; monsterlike; over-demanding
treasuring; cherishing; prizing; holding dear
unfair; unjust; wrongful; improper; unreasonable; unwarranted
the Emperor; His Majesty; the government; the authorities; proprietress; hostess
censorship; inspection; examination
violence; oppression; high-handedness; tyranny; despotism
whispering into a person's ear
liver; innards; courage; spirit; crux; essential point
wholeheartedly; single-mindedly; fervently; intently
video game hardware; video game console
on the brink of collapse; in a state of near-collapse
old maid (game); living without one's mother-in-law
fukuwarai; New Year's game in which blindfolded players place cutouts of facial features onto the outline of a face
year-end and New Year holidays (e.g. from December 29 to January 3)
old woman; joker (in old maid)
stratagem; artifice; trick; ruse; scheme; tactics
last (on the list); (at the) bottom; (in) last position; tailender
shuffle (of playing cards, etc.); rearranging (in a random order); shaking (a container to mix ingredients, etc.)
flying; false start; doing something before the scheduled time or date; breaking the street date
soup containing rice cakes and vegetables (New Year's dish)
soup containing rice cakes and vegetables (New Year's dish)
osechi; osechi-ryōri; traditional food eaten during the New Year's holidays
osechi; food eaten during the New Year's Holidays
carrot (Daucus carota); Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng)
kamaboko; steamed seasoned fish paste, usu. in a semicylindrical shape on a strip of wood and sliced to go in soup, etc.