False friends: Japanese–English
96 words that look like English and mean something else. This list is built the other way round from the usual ones: on the left is what you want to say, next to it the Japanese word for it — and only then the trap. If all you know is what a word does not mean, you are still stuck in the conversation.
Everyday
The katakana words that come up in your very first weeks: at home, in shops, at the station.
| You mean | That is | Not this one | Because that means |
|---|---|---|---|
| department | 部 | デパート | a department store |
| 母の誕生日のプレゼントをデパートで買いました。I bought my mother’s birthday present at a department store.A department in a company is a 部 — 営業部, the sales department; at a university it is a 学部. | |||
| ice | 氷 | アイス | ice cream; iced, of a drink |
| 暑いから、アイスが食べたいです。It’s hot, so I want an ice cream.At the front of a word it means iced: アイスコーヒー. The frozen water in your glass is 氷. | |||
| note (a short message) | メモ | ノート | a notebook, an exercise book |
| 授業の内容をノートにまとめました。I wrote up the lesson in my notebook.A quick note on a scrap of paper is a メモ. A laptop is a ノートパソコン, a notebook PC: Japanese kept the notebook and dropped the lap. | |||
| mansion | 豪邸 | マンション | a flat in a modern block, rented or owned |
| 駅の近くのマンションに住んでいます。I live in a flat near the station.A マンション is usually a perfectly ordinary flat in a concrete block of several storeys. A large, grand house is a 豪邸, and few people live in one. | |||
| apartment (in a modern block) | マンション | アパート | a flat in a small, low-rise building, usually older and cheaper |
| 学生のころは、古いアパートの二階に住んでいました。When I was a student, I lived on the first floor of an old block of flats.The difference is the building rather than the flat: a wooden or light-steel building of two or three storeys is an アパート; a concrete block, often with a lift and an entrance hall, a マンション. | |||
| home | 家 | ホーム | a station platform |
| 次の電車は三番ホームから出ます。The next train leaves from platform three.In 老人ホーム, a care home for the elderly, the word is closer to English. Your home is 家, and at home 家で. | |||
| hot (spicy) | 辛い | ホット | hot, of a drink — as opposed to iced |
| コーヒーはホットとアイスがありますが、どちらにしますか。We have hot or iced coffee — which would you like?In a café, ホットで is enough to order a hot coffee. A curry that burns is 辛い; hot weather is 暑い, and a hot bath 熱い. | |||
| bike (bicycle) | 自転車 | バイク | a motorbike or a scooter |
| 兄は毎朝バイクで会社に行きます。My brother goes to work on his motorbike every morning.A bicycle is a 自転車. In マウンテンバイク, a mountain bike, the loanword does mean a bicycle — on its own it has an engine. | |||
| stove (for cooking) | コンロ | ストーブ | a room heater, burning paraffin or gas, or electric |
| 寒いので、ストーブをつけましょう。It’s cold, so let’s put the heater on.The burners you cook on are a コンロ, or a ガスコンロ for gas. The oven is an オーブン. | |||
| consent | 同意 | コンセント | an electrical socket, a power point |
| スマホを充電したいんですが、コンセントはありますか。I’d like to charge my phone — is there a socket?Agreement or permission is 同意 or 承諾. Medicine has borrowed the English sense in インフォームド・コンセント, and nowhere else does the word mean consent. | |||
| trainers (shoes) | スニーカー | トレーナー | a sweatshirt; also a fitness trainer |
| 寒くなってきたので、厚いトレーナーを出しました。It’s getting colder, so I’ve got my thick sweatshirt out.A British trap. The shoes are スニーカー; the personal trainer at the gym is a トレーナー too, so only the shoes are missing from the word. | |||
| jumper | セーター | ジャンパー | a casual zip-up jacket, a windcheater |
| 風が強いから、ジャンパーを着ていったほうがいいですよ。It’s windy, so you’d better wear a jacket.Another British trap: the knitted jumper is セーター. A pinafore dress, which Americans call a jumper, is a ジャンパースカート. | |||
| dress (for every day) | ワンピース | ドレス | a formal dress: an evening gown, a party or a wedding dress |
| 姉は白いドレスを着て結婚式を挙げました。My sister got married in a white dress.An ordinary dress, the kind you wear to work or to the shops, is a ワンピース — one piece, top and skirt together. In English a one-piece is a swimsuit. | |||
| front | 前 | フロント | the reception desk of a hotel |
| 鍵はフロントに預けてから出かけました。I left the key at reception before going out.The front of a building is its 正面, and in front of the station 駅の前. A car’s windscreen is a フロントガラス, where the English sense is still there. | |||
| cider | シードル | サイダー | a clear, sweet fizzy soft drink |
| 夏になると、冷たいサイダーが飲みたくなります。In summer I always feel like a glass of cold lemonade.It tastes like British lemonade and contains no apples and no alcohol. Cider made from apples is シードル, from the French. | |||
| chips | フライドポテト | チップス | crisps |
| 映画を見ながらポテトチップスを食べました。I ate crisps while watching the film.A British trap only: for an American reader chips are crisps anyway. Chips in the British sense are フライドポテト, a Japanese-made word, or just ポテト at a burger bar. | |||
| rice (uncooked) | 米 | ライス | cooked rice on a plate, served with a Western-style meal |
| ステーキのセットは、パンかライスを選べます。With the steak set you can choose bread or rice.Rice in a bowl at a Japanese meal is ご飯; the grain you buy in a bag is 米 or お米. | |||
| hamburger | ハンバーガー | ハンバーグ | a minced-meat patty served on a plate, without a bun |
| 今日の晩ご飯は、母の手作りのハンバーグです。Tonight’s dinner is my mother’s home-made hamburg steak.The one in a bun is a ハンバーガー. The plate version is a family classic, usually served with a sauce and rice. | |||
| pudding | デザート | プリン | crème caramel, a set custard |
| 冷蔵庫に入れておいたプリンを弟に食べられました。My little brother ate the crème caramel I had put in the fridge.A British trap: pudding as the sweet course is デザート. プリン is always the wobbly caramel custard. | |||
| horse | 馬 | ホース | a hose |
| 庭の花にホースで水をやりました。I watered the flowers in the garden with the hose.Not a false friend so much as a false echo: say horse in katakana and you get a garden hose. The animal is 馬. | |||
| seal (stamp) | 印鑑 | シール | a sticker |
| 子どもがノートにかわいいシールを貼っています。The child is putting cute stickers in the notebook.The personal name seal used in Japan in place of a signature is an 印鑑, or in everyday speech a はんこ. | |||
| stamp (for a letter) | 切手 | スタンプ | a rubber stamp and its print; also a sticker in a chat app |
| 駅に置いてあるスタンプを手帳に押しました。I pressed the station’s ink stamp into my diary.A postage stamp is a 切手. Many stations and sights keep an ink stamp for visitors, and collecting them is a hobby of its own. | |||
| post (letters and parcels) | 郵便 | ポスト | a postbox; also a letterbox at home |
| この手紙を出しに、ポストまで行ってきます。I’m just going to the postbox to post this letter.The post as a service is 郵便, the post office 郵便局. ポスト can also mean a post in the sense of a job. | |||
| mail (letters) | 郵便物 | メール | e-mail; also a text message on a phone |
| 集合時間は、あとでメールで送ります。I’ll send you the meeting time by e-mail later.The letters and parcels that arrive at your door are 郵便物, or just 郵便. | |||
| address | 住所 | アドレス | an e-mail address |
| 新しいメールアドレスを教えてください。Please give me your new e-mail address.Where you live is your 住所: ここに住所と名前を書いてください. | |||
| sign (a road sign) | 標識 | サイン | a signature or an autograph; also a signal |
| ここにサインをお願いします。Could you sign here, please?A road sign is a 標識, a shop sign a 看板. | |||
| trump (card) | 切り札 | トランプ | playing cards; a game of cards |
| お正月には、家族でトランプをします。At New Year we play cards as a family.The trump in a card game, and the one you keep up your sleeve in life, is a 切り札. トランプ is the whole pack. | |||
| corner (of a street) | 角 | コーナー | a section of a shop; a regular slot in a programme |
| 料理の本は、奥のコーナーにあります。Cookery books are in the section at the back.Turn left at the corner: 角を左に曲がってください. The corner of a room is 隅. | |||
| drama (a stage play) | 演劇 | ドラマ | a television series |
| 毎週月曜日の夜は、このドラマを見ています。I watch this series every Monday night.A play at the theatre is 演劇 or 芝居. | |||
| cooler (cool box) | クーラーボックス | クーラー | an air conditioner |
| 暑いので、クーラーをつけてもいいですか。It’s hot — may I turn on the air conditioning?エアコン is the more usual word today and covers heating as well. The box you take on a picnic is a クーラーボックス. | |||
| to drive (a car) | 運転する | ドライブ | a drive for pleasure, a trip in the car |
| 週末は海までドライブに行きました。At the weekend we went for a drive to the sea.Being behind the wheel, as an activity or a skill, is 運転する: 車を運転できますか — can you drive? | |||
| bill (in a restaurant) | お会計 | ビル | a building, usually an office block |
| 駅前に新しいビルが建ちました。A new building has gone up by the station.In a restaurant, ask with お会計お願いします. A bill that comes in the post, for gas or electricity, is a 請求書. | |||
| classic (a timeless one) | 名作 | クラシック | classical music |
| 休みの日は、クラシックを聞きながら本を読みます。On my days off I read while listening to classical music.A classic film or book is a 名作. As an adjective, クラシックな does mean classic or old-style, of a car or a building. | |||
| circle (shape) | 円 | サークル | a university club or society |
| 大学ではテニスのサークルに入っていました。At university I was in the tennis club.A circle on paper is an 円, or a 丸 if it is a mark. A サークル is the relaxed kind of club; the serious, competitive kind is a 部. | |||
| text (a message) | メッセージ | テキスト | a textbook used in a class |
| 来週までに、テキストの20ページまで読んでおいてください。Please read up to page twenty of the textbook by next week.A text message is usually just a メッセージ. Text in the sense of words on a screen can be テキスト too, mostly in computing. | |||
| morning | 朝 | モーニング | a café breakfast set, served until late morning |
| この喫茶店のモーニングは、トーストとゆで卵が付いて500円です。This café’s breakfast set comes with toast and a boiled egg for 500 yen.Short for モーニングサービス. Good morning is おはようございます, and in the morning 朝 or 午前中. | |||
| pension | 年金 | ペンション | a small Western-style guest house, often in the mountains or by the sea |
| 夏休みに高原のペンションに泊まりました。In the summer holidays we stayed at a guest house up in the hills.The money you live on after you retire is 年金. The guest house came into Japanese through French, where the word means a boarding house. | |||
| machine | 機械 | ミシン | a sewing machine |
| 祖母はミシンで孫の服を作ってくれます。My grandmother makes clothes for her grandchildren on her sewing machine.The word is what was left of sewing machine when the first ones arrived. Any other machine is a 機械, or a マシン in sport and computing. | |||
| handle | 取っ手 | ハンドル | a steering wheel; handlebars |
| 雨の日は、ハンドルをしっかり握ってください。On rainy days, keep a firm grip on the wheel.The handle of a door or a drawer is a 取っ手; a round door handle you turn is a ドアノブ. | |||
| vest (undershirt) | 肌着 | ベスト | a waistcoat; also best |
| 結婚式では、上着の下にベストを着ました。At the wedding I wore a waistcoat under my jacket.A British vest, worn next to the skin, is 肌着. ベスト also means best, as in ベストを尽くす, to do your best. | |||
| to fry | 炒める | フライ | food coated in breadcrumbs and deep-fried |
| 昼ご飯にアジのフライを食べました。I had breaded horse mackerel for lunch.Frying in a pan with a little oil is 炒める or 焼く. エビフライ, breaded prawns, is the one everybody knows. | |||
| rock (stone) | 岩 | ロック | on the rocks, of a drink; also rock music |
| ウイスキーをロックでお願いします。A whisky on the rocks, please.A rock is an 岩, a smaller stone an 石. ロック also means a lock: ドアをロックする, to lock the door. | |||
| snack | おやつ | スナック | a small bar run by a hostess; also crisps and the like |
| 駅前のスナックで、歌を歌いながら飲みました。We had a drink and sang at a little bar by the station.Something to eat between meals is おやつ or 間食. Crisps and the like are スナック菓子, so the word is only half a trap. | |||
| jug | 水差し | ジョッキ | a beer mug, a tankard |
| 生ビールをジョッキで二つお願いします。Two draught beers, please — in mugs.The word did come from jug, but it only ever holds beer. A jug of water on the table is a 水差し, or a ピッチャー. | |||
| pot (for cooking) | 鍋 | ポット | a vacuum flask or an electric hot-water dispenser; also a teapot |
| ポットのお湯でお茶を入れました。I made tea with water from the hot-water dispenser.A pan for cooking is a 鍋, a saucepan with a long handle a 片手鍋. | |||
| living (earning a living) | 生計 | リビング | a living room |
| 夕食のあと、家族はリビングに集まります。After dinner the family gathers in the living room.To earn a living is 生計を立てる; life in the everyday sense is 生活. | |||
| back (of the body) | 背中 | バック | reversing, of a car; also a background |
| 駐車場では、ゆっくりバックしてください。Please reverse slowly in the car park.Your back is your 背中, and pain in the lower back 腰痛. A bag, which sounds almost the same, is spelt バッグ. | |||
| punk | パンクロック | パンク | a flat tyre, a puncture; also a system giving out under the load |
| 自転車がパンクしたので、歩いて帰りました。My bike had a puncture, so I walked home.Punk the music is パンク as well, but in everyday talk the first thing anyone hears is a flat tyre. To be safe, say パンクロック. | |||
| healthy (of a person) | 健康な | ヘルシー | light and low in calories, of food |
| 野菜が多くて、ヘルシーな料理ですね。Lots of vegetables — it’s a nice light dish.ヘルシー describes food, never a person. Someone in good health is 健康 or 元気. | |||
| diet (what you eat) | 食生活 | ダイエット | trying to lose weight, slimming |
| 夏までに3キロやせたいので、ダイエットを始めました。I want to lose three kilos by the summer, so I’ve started slimming.What you normally eat is your 食生活: 食生活を見直す, to rethink how you eat. ダイエット always means losing weight, even by exercise. | |||
| vinyl (a record) | レコード | ビニール | thin plastic, as in a bag, a cover or a sheet |
| 雨の日は、自転車にビニールのカバーをかけます。On rainy days I put a plastic cover over my bike.A record is a レコード. In a plastic carrier bag, ビニール袋, the plastic is what the word means. | |||
| gum (to chew) | ガム | ゴム | rubber; an elastic band |
| 髪をゴムで結んでいます。I tie my hair back with a hair band.The two came in by different roads, through Dutch and through English. Chewing gum is ガム; ゴム is rubber, as in ゴム手袋, rubber gloves. | |||
| bargain | 掘り出し物 | バーゲン | a sale in a shop |
| 冬のバーゲンでコートを安く買いました。I bought a coat cheaply in the winter sales.A lucky find at a low price is a 掘り出し物, something dug out; a good deal is お買い得. | |||
| sheet (on a bed) | シーツ | シート | a seat, in a car or a stadium; also a plastic sheet |
| 車の後ろのシートに荷物を置きました。I put the luggage on the back seat of the car.The sheet on a bed is シーツ, with the English plural kept even for one. A sheet of paper is 一枚の紙. | |||
| mark (in a test) | 点数 | マーク | a symbol or a logo; also keeping a close eye on someone |
| このマークがついている商品は、リサイクルできます。Products with this symbol on them can be recycled.Your result in a test is your 点数 or 点. A mark in the sense of a stain is a しみ. | |||
| talent | 才能 | タレント | a television personality |
| あのタレントは、最近いろいろな番組に出ています。That TV personality has been on all sorts of programmes lately.A gift for something is 才能: 音楽の才能がある. A タレント is someone known from television, whatever their gift. | |||
| essay | レポート | エッセイ | a light personal essay, of the kind a columnist writes |
| この作家のエッセイは、読みやすくて面白いです。This writer’s essays are easy to read and great fun.The essay a university student hands in is a レポート, and the long one at the end of a degree a 卒業論文. エッセイ is a kind of literature, not coursework. | |||
| border (between countries) | 国境 | ボーダー | horizontal stripes, on clothes |
| 今日は青と白のボーダーのシャツを着ています。Today I’m wearing a blue-and-white striped top.A national border is a 国境, and a dividing line in general a 境界. Vertical stripes are ストライプ. | |||
| diagram | 図 | ダイヤ | a train timetable; also a diamond |
| 大雪の影響で、電車のダイヤが乱れています。Train services are disrupted because of the heavy snow.The word is short for the timetable diagram railway staff plan with. A diagram in a book is a 図. | |||
At work
What goes wrong in an office, a meeting or an e-mail.
| You mean | That is | Not this one | Because that means |
|---|---|---|---|
| claim (something you assert) | 主張 | クレーム | a complaint, above all from a customer |
| お客様からのクレームには、すぐに対応してください。Please deal with complaints from customers straight away.To claim that something is so is 主張する; an insurance claim is a 保険金の請求. | |||
| to miss (a train) | 乗り遅れる | ミス | a mistake; to get something wrong |
| 計算のミスがないか、もう一度確認してください。Please check once more that there are no mistakes in the figures.Missing a train is 電車に乗り遅れる; missing a person is 会いたい or 寂しい. ミスする only ever means making a mistake. | |||
| part | 部分 | パート | a part-time job, usually in daytime hours |
| 子育てが一段落したので、近所のパン屋でパートを始めました。Now the children are older, I’ve started working part-time at the local bakery.A part of something is a 部分, a spare part a 部品. パート and アルバイト are both part-time work; パート is said mostly of adults with fixed hours. | |||
| free (costing nothing) | 無料 | フリー | freelance; also unattached |
| 会社を辞めて、今はフリーのカメラマンをしています。I left the company and now work as a freelance photographer.Free of charge is 無料 or ただ. In compounds the English sense is common — a フリードリンク is a drink included in the price — but on its own フリー usually means working for yourself. | |||
| commercial (adjective) | 商業的な | コマーシャル | an advert on television or the radio |
| この歌は、車のコマーシャルで使われていました。This song was used in a car advert.Commercial as an adjective, made for profit, is 商業的な. In speech the noun is often cut down to two letters, CM. | |||
| campaign (for an election) | 選挙運動 | キャンペーン | a sales promotion, a special-offer period |
| 今月はキャンペーン中なので、送料が無料です。There’s a promotion on this month, so delivery is free.Canvassing before an election is 選挙運動. Public awareness campaigns are キャンペーン too, so the trap is the election. | |||
| soft | 柔らかい | ソフト | software; also soft-serve ice cream |
| 写真を加工するソフトを使って、ポスターを作りました。I made the poster with photo-editing software.A soft pillow or soft bread is 柔らかい. ソフト can describe a gentle manner — ソフトな話し方 — but on its own it is usually software, or a ソフトクリーム. | |||
| veteran (former soldier) | 退役軍人 | ベテラン | an old hand, someone with long experience |
| ベテランの看護師さんが、新人に仕事を教えています。An experienced nurse is showing the new staff the ropes.A former soldier is a 退役軍人. ベテラン works for any job: a veteran driver, nurse or teacher. | |||
| demerit (a black mark) | 減点 | デメリット | a disadvantage, a drawback |
| 家が駅から遠いのが、唯一のデメリットです。The only drawback is that the house is a long way from the station.English uses demerit mostly for a penalty point. Japanese has made a pair of it: メリットとデメリット, advantages and disadvantages. | |||
| appeal (to a higher court) | 控訴 | アピール | getting across what is good about yourself or a product |
| 新しい商品の良さを、もっとお客様にアピールする必要があります。We need to do more to show customers what is good about the new product.Appealing against a verdict is 控訴. 自己アピール is the part of an interview or a CV where you sell yourself. | |||
| restructuring | 再編 | リストラ | job cuts, lay-offs |
| 父は去年リストラされて、今は転職活動をしています。My father lost his job in the cuts last year and is now looking for a new one.Reorganising a company or an industry is 再編. リストラされる means one thing only: being made redundant. | |||
| résumé (CV) | 履歴書 | レジュメ | a handout summarising a talk or a seminar |
| 発表の前に、レジュメを人数分コピーしておきました。Before the presentation I made a copy of the handout for everyone.An American résumé, a CV, is a 履歴書, and in Japan it is often written on a printed form. | |||
| neck | 首 | ネック | a sticking point, a bottleneck |
| この計画は、費用が高いのがネックです。The sticking point with this plan is the cost.The part of the body is a 首 — and so, in 首になる, is getting the sack. ネック is short for bottleneck. | |||
| one-man show (exhibition) | 個展 | ワンマン | autocratic, of a boss who decides everything alone |
| うちの社長はワンマンで、誰の意見も聞きません。Our company president runs everything himself and listens to nobody.An artist’s solo exhibition is a 個展. A ワンマンライブ, a concert by one act with no support, keeps the English sense. | |||
| to hire (take on staff) | 雇う | ハイヤー | a car with a driver, booked in advance |
| 空港から会場まで、ハイヤーを手配しました。I booked a car with a driver from the airport to the venue.Taking on staff is 雇う or, more formally, 採用する. Hiring a car you drive yourself is レンタカーを借りる. | |||
| homepage | トップページ | ホームページ | a website, all of it |
| 詳しいことは、会社のホームページを見てください。For details, please see the company website.The front page of a site is the トップページ. サイト and ウェブサイト are said too. | |||
Nearly right
Words that exist — just not for what you mean.
| You mean | That is | Not this one | Because that means |
|---|---|---|---|
| smart (clever) | 頭がいい | スマート | slim and elegant; also neat, polished |
| 彼女はモデルのようにスマートですね。She’s as slim as a model, isn’t she?Clever is 頭がいい or 賢い. Technology has brought the English sense in — スマートフォン — but said of a person, the word is about their figure. | |||
| tension (strain) | 緊張 | テンション | energy, excitement, high spirits |
| 旅行の前の日は、テンションが上がって眠れませんでした。The night before the trip I was too excited to sleep.Tension in the sense of nerves is 緊張. テンションが高い means somebody is full of beans, not under strain. | |||
| naive | 世間知らず | ナイーブ | sensitive, easily hurt |
| 彼はナイーブだから、言い方に気をつけてね。He’s sensitive, so be careful how you put it.Naive in the English sense, inexperienced and too trusting, is 世間知らず. ナイーブ is often meant kindly. | |||
| cunning | ずる賢い | カンニング | cheating in an exam |
| 弟は試験でカンニングをして、先生に叱られました。My little brother was told off by the teacher for cheating in the exam.Cunning, sly, is ずる賢い. カンニング is only ever copying in a test. | |||
| mood (how you feel) | 気分 | ムード | the atmosphere of a place, often a romantic one |
| このレストランは、ろうそくの明かりでムードがありますね。This restaurant has real atmosphere with its candlelight.How you yourself feel is your 気分: 今日は気分がいい. A ムードメーカー is the person who lifts everybody’s spirits. | |||
| image (a picture) | 画像 | イメージ | an impression; the picture you have in your mind |
| 東京には、忙しい町というイメージがあります。Tokyo has the image of a busy city.A picture on a screen or in a file is a 画像. イメージチェンジ, often イメチェン, is a makeover. | |||
| celebrity | 有名人 | セレブ | rich and glamorous; the well-off |
| このホテルは高級で、セレブに人気があるそうです。They say this hotel is upmarket and popular with the wealthy.Someone famous is a 有名人. セレブ is about money and lifestyle, and a セレブ need not be known to anybody. | |||
| at home | 家で | アットホーム | warm and friendly, like a family |
| 小さい会社ですが、アットホームな雰囲気です。It’s a small company, but the atmosphere is warm and friendly.Being at home is 家にいる. アットホームな describes a place or a group, never where you are. | |||
| loose | ゆるい | ルーズ | careless, sloppy, above all about time |
| 彼はお金にルーズで、よく友達に借りています。He is careless with money and often borrows from his friends.Loose in the physical sense — a loose screw, loose trousers — is ゆるい. 時間にルーズ is the commonest use: always late. | |||
| sense (common sense) | 常識 | センス | taste, flair — an eye for what works |
| 部屋の家具を見ると、彼女のセンスがわかります。You can tell her taste from the furniture in her room.Common sense, what everybody knows, is 常識; the sense of a word is its 意味. センスがいい praises somebody’s taste. | |||
| service (how staff treat you) | 接客 | サービス | something given free, on the house; also service in general |
| これはサービスですので、どうぞ召し上がってください。This one is on the house — please enjoy it.The way staff look after customers is 接客, though サービス covers that too. In a shop or a restaurant, サービスです means you will not be paying for it. | |||
| I don’t mind | かまいません | ドンマイ | never mind! — said to cheer up somebody who has made a mistake |
| 試合で失敗した後輩に、「ドンマイ、ドンマイ」と声をかけました。I called out “never mind, never mind” to the younger player who had slipped up in the match.If you do not object, say かまいません or 大丈夫です. ドンマイ is only ever comfort after a slip, mostly in sport. | |||
| fight | けんか | ファイト | fighting spirit; as a cheer, come on, you can do it |
| 応援している人たちが、「ファイト！」と叫んでいます。The supporters are shouting “Come on!”A fight between people is a けんか. ファイト is encouragement, the opposite of a quarrel. | |||
| challenge (a difficult problem) | 課題 | チャレンジ | having a go at something difficult |
| 今年はフルマラソンにチャレンジするつもりです。This year I’m going to have a go at a full marathon.A problem still waiting to be solved is a 課題: 今後の課題, the challenge ahead. A チャレンジ is always something you choose to try. | |||
| at your own pace | 自分のペースで | マイペース | of a person: unhurried, going their own way whatever others do |
| 弟はマイペースで、何をするにも時間がかかります。My brother does everything in his own time and is slow at all of it.Japanese-made English. マイペースで can mean at your own pace, but マイペースな人 is someone who will not be hurried — praise or a complaint, depending on who says it. | |||
| severe (of an illness) | 重い | シビア | harsh, strict, unforgiving — of a judgement or conditions |
| この業界は、結果に対する評価がシビアです。In this industry, results are judged harshly.A severe illness is a 重い病気; severe weather is 厳しい. シビア is about people and situations that make no allowances. | |||
| unique (one of a kind) | 唯一の | ユニーク | unusual, original, quirky — usually a compliment |
| その先生の授業は、教え方がユニークで人気があります。That teacher’s lessons are popular because of the original way they are taught.One of a kind is 唯一の or 独自の. A ユニークな人 is someone interesting and a little different. | |||
| complex (a set of buildings) | 複合施設 | コンプレックス | a sense of inferiority, a hang-up about yourself |
| 子どものころから、背が低いことがコンプレックスでした。Ever since I was a child I’ve been self-conscious about being short.A complex of buildings is a 複合施設, and complicated is 複雑. コンプレックス is always about how you see yourself. | |||
| man to man (frankly) | 腹を割って | マンツーマン | one to one, as in a lesson with a single teacher |
| この英会話教室は、マンツーマンのレッスンが中心です。This English school mostly gives one-to-one lessons.A frank talk between two people is 腹を割って話す — talking with your bellies open. In sport, マンツーマン is also man-to-man marking. | |||
| flying | 飛行 | フライング | a false start in a race; jumping the gun |
| 彼はフライングで失格になりました。He was disqualified for a false start.Flying in a plane is 飛行. フライング is also said of news or a product that comes out before its date. | |||
| silver (the metal) | 銀 | シルバー | older people, in compounds; also silver as a colour |
| 祖父は定年後、シルバー人材センターで働いています。Since retiring, my grandfather has found work through a job centre for older people.The metal is 銀. A silver car is a シルバーの車, so the colour survives. | |||