beginning character or characters that uniquely identify a poem in the Hyakunin Isshu (esp. used in competitive karuta)
acquaintance; friend; (arch.) lover
hibernation; staying indoors during winter
reader (person); person who reads the cards (in karuta games); composer (of a poem)
competitor; contestant; player; athlete
something that leaps or thrusts out
Nichiren sect; Tendai sect; Lotus Sutra
European magpie (Pica pica)
eternity; perpetuity; immortality; permanence
evening; last night; yesterday evening
touching a wrong card (in karuta); buzzing too early (in a quiz); making a mistress of a servant; mistress (who is one's servant)
young imperial prince; child of the imperial family; shrine dedicated to a child of the god of the main shrine; newly built shrine (to which a divided tutelary deity has just been transferred)
Naniwa (former name for Osaka region)
to drag down; to pull down; to force out (of power, office, role, etc.)
absentmindedly; dazedly; vaguely
dismissal of class (at the end of the day); recess (at school); break
karuta; traditional Japanese playing cards
team competition; team game
to air; to dry; to drain (off); to drink up; to deprive of a role, job, etc.
Suō (former province located in the southeast of present-day Yamaguchi Prefecture)
reproachful; hateful; bitter
a gap develops; a significant difference emerges
field in which one acts unchallenged; unrivaled sphere of activity (unrivalled); one's monopoly
Yamashiro (former province located in the south of present-day Kyoto Prefecture)
resentment; grudge; malice; matter for regret; regret
class-B; B class; B grade; second rate
one's own ground; one's own position; one's own area of the field (soccer, rugby, etc.)
(one) letter; (one) character
commander-in-chief; supreme commander; captain (of a team)
great mountain; large mountain
class-A; A class; A grade
(arch.) youth; (arch.) freshness; good omen; Sweden; Switzerland
finger flick to the forehead