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
story; tale; narrative; account; fable; legend
sky; the air; weather; far-off place; distant place; state of mind; feeling
ball (for sport, games, etc.); kemari; type of football played by courtiers in ancient Japan
work (e.g. of art); production; harvest; cultivation; technique
picture; drawing; painting; image (TV, film, etc.); picture; footage
at (place, time); in; to (direction, state); toward; for (purpose); because of (reason); for
north; the North; northern territories; North Korea; (arch.) north wind
end; verge; extremity; miss; failure; blank (e.g. lottery ticket)
satisfactory; decent; good; proper; worthy
called; named; as many as; as much as; all ...; every single ...
indicates sentence subject (occasionally object); indicates possessive (esp. in literary expressions); but; however; regardless of; whether (or not)
to be; to exist; to have; to be located; to be equipped with; to happen
event; affair; incident; case; plot; trouble
indicates sentence topic; indicates contrast with another option (stated or unstated); adds emphasis
single word; a few words; brief comment
from (e.g. time, place, numerical quantity); since; from (originator); by; because; since; out of (constituent, part)
to begin; to start; to happen (again); to begin (anew); to date (from); to originate (in)
huh?; eh?; what?; oh; hey!; look!
yes; yeah; huh?; what?; not; 's
you said; he said; if ... then; do you seriously think that; I already told you; you should know by now that; the said ...
round; circular; curved; smooth; harmonious; calm
indicates reason or excuse; indicates dissatisfaction; indicates desire to be pampered or indulged
together (with); at the same time; in a lump
to play (games, sports); to enjoy oneself; to mess about (with alcohol, gambling, philandery, etc.); to be idle; to do nothing; to meet up (with friends); to hang out
fox cub; little fox; small fox; juvenile fox
if; when; and; with; used for quoting (thoughts, speech, etc.); promoted pawn; indicates a question
yellow sand; yellow dust; loess; desert
too; also; both A and B; A as well as B; even; as much as
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.
to look up at; to raise one's eyes; to look up to; to admire; to respect
deep blue; bright blue; ghastly pale; pallid; white as a sheet
small; little; slight; below average (in degree, amount, etc.); low (e.g. sound); soft (e.g. voice)
to be seen; to be in sight; to look; to seem; to come
thing; object; one's things; possessions; things; something; quality
to move; to stir; to operate; to run; to make a move; to take action; to be touched
what!; oh; what the heck; what the; damn
that; that thing; that person; then; that time; that place (over there); down there (i.e. one's genitals)
to approach; to draw near; to get close; to get acquainted with; to get closer to; to get to know
to come (spatially or temporally); to approach; to come back; to do ... and come back; to come to be; to become
-like; sort of; similar to; resembling
is not; am not; are not; isn't it?