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Tuesday 27 September 2011

猫のひげ

Idiom:
  • The cat's whiskers
Meaning:
  • Excellent
  • Superb
  • High quality
  • Perfect
Example:
"My new mobile phone is the cat's whiskers!"

Another idiom with the same meaning:
  • The bee's knees
Example:
"Takeshi's new car is the bee's knees!"

A vulgar idiom with the same meaning:
  • The dog's bollocks (This idiom is popular with low-class people; it is not recommended.)
Example:
"Akira's home cinema system is the dog's bollocks!"

Saturday 24 September 2011

豚の耳

Idiom:
  • Make a pig's ear of something

Meaning:
  • Complete a task badly
  • Make a mess
  • Make a muddle
  • Make something and the result is bad

Example:

Ryoko: "You've made a pig's ear of our new Ikea furniture!" 
Masahiro: "Sorry, I couldn't understand the instructions."


Thursday 22 September 2011

馬の口

Idiom:
  • Straight from the horse's mouth
= I heard it directly from the person in the story



Situation:
  • A person tells you a story about himself/herself
  • You tell another person the same story
  • The other person thinks it is a rumour or a lie
  • You say "I heard it straight from the horse's mouth."


Example:

Kazuhiko: "Natsumi had a date with the boss!"
Nanako: "No way; I don't believe that. Who told you?"
Kazuhiko: "It's true; I heard it straight from the horse's mouth." (Natsumi herself told Kazuhiko.)

Sunday 18 September 2011

好きじゃない

When we do not like something, we can use this idiom:
  • It is not my cup of tea.
Example 1:
Haruna: "Shall we go skiing?"
Haruko: "No thank you, skiing is not my cup of tea."
Example 2:
Seiji: "How was the movie?"
Kouji: "It wasn't my cup of tea."

We never use this idiom for people.
Chisato is not my cup of tea. X

Saturday 17 September 2011

気を付けて

When there is some danger or risk we say:
  • Be careful
  • Take care
Examples:
  • Be careful of that dish: It is very hot.
  • Take care with that dish: It is very hot.
  • Be careful in Rio de Janeiro: There are lots of criminals.
  • Take care in Rio de Janeiro: There are lots of criminals.

When we say good bye to our friends and family we want them to be safe; we want to show we care and they are important; we use these expressions:
  • Good bye! Take care!
  • Go carefully! Good bye!
  • Take it easy! (Very informal)

If a person is going on a trip or a long journey, we say:
  • Have a safe journey!

Tuesday 13 September 2011

くたくた

くたくた =
  • exhausted
  • tired out
  • worn out
  • knackered
Examples:
  • I was exhausted after running the marathon.
  • I'm tired out after that business trip to Dubai and London.
  • My husband has been working for 15 hours and now he's worn out.
  • I've worked 10 days straight; I'm knackered!

Idiom:

I'm dead on my feet.
= I'm exhausted.

Saturday 10 September 2011

出産

出産 = birth

When a woman is pregnant, we usually want to know the birth date. We can ask these questions:
  • When is your baby due?
  • When are you due (to give birth)?

When a woman is pregnant, we usually want to know the place of the birth. We can ask this question:
  • Where are you having your baby?

性別 = gender

When a woman is pregnant, we usually want to know the baby's gender. We can ask this question:
  • Is your baby a boy or a girl?

Thursday 8 September 2011

妊娠

妊娠している = pregnant (adjective)

Examples:
  • My wife is pregnant with our second child.
  • Kumiko is 8 months pregnant so she's started maternity leave.
  • I can't drink alcohol because I'm pregnant.


Expecting = pregnant (+ birth date) (not duration)

Examples:
  • My wife is expecting our second child.
  • I'm expecting so I can't drink alcohol.
  • Mayumi is expecting twins in April!
  • Kumiko is 8 months expecting. X 

Idiom:

Hayato's girlfriend's got a bun in the oven.
= Hayato's girlfriend is pregnant.

Thursday 1 September 2011

ゼロ

There are several ways to say the number 0
  • Zero (formal maths, science, finance)
  • Oh (time, telephone numbers)
  • Nought (informal maths, science)
  • Nil (sport scores)
  • Nothing (general conversation about quantity)
  • Zilch (very informal and less common)