China; Chūgoku region (western part of Honshu comprising the prefectures of Okayama, Hiroshima, Yamaguchi, Tottori and Shimane); central part of a country; main region; province of the second lowest rank (ritsuryo system)
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
old; aged; long; since long ago; of the distant past; long-ago
at (place, time); in; to (direction, state); toward; for (purpose); because of (reason); for
foxes and tanuki; sly fellow; deceiver
instar (developmental stage of arthropods); age; years
year; counter for years (e.g. of an era), grades (e.g. school); period of an apprentice's contract (usu. ten years)
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 pass; to elapse; to pass through; to go through; to experience; to go through
fox with supernatural powers
if; when; and; with; used for quoting (thoughts, speech, etc.); promoted pawn; indicates a question
to change into; to convert into; to transform; to be reduced; to influence; to improve (someone)
person; someone; human beings; mankind; human (Homo sapiens); (other) people; others
action of making something; -ification
art; technique; means; way; trick; trap
understanding; comprehension; grasp; perception; appreciation; mastery (of an art or skill)
indicates word or phrase being defined; used for quoting (thoughts, speech, etc.); with; (not) as much as; (not) so much as; the fact that
human being; human; person; character (of a person)
to take the form of (esp. in ref. to a spirit, fox, raccoon dog, etc.); to assume the shape of; to disguise oneself as; to change radically; to metamorphose; to improve unexpectedly and dramatically (esp. of an actor, artist, rikishi, etc.)
thing; matter; incident; occurrence; circumstances; situation; work
that; the; part (as in "part two"); um ...; er ...
method; process; manner; way; means; technique
indicates sentence topic; indicates contrast with another option (stated or unstated); adds emphasis
skull (esp. weatherbeaten, used as symbol of death); death's head; cranium
head; hair (on one's head); mind; brains; leader; chief; top
above; up; top; summit; surface; before; previous
to place on (something); to give (someone) a ride; to give a lift; to load (luggage); to carry; to send out (on the airwaves, etc.); to deceive
the Big Dipper (asterism); the Plough; the Plow
worship (esp. Christian); adoration; divine service; worship (esp. Buddhist and Shinto)
to be called ...; to be referred to as ...
indicates sentence subject (occasionally object); indicates possessive (esp. in literary expressions); but; however; regardless of; whether (or not)
no good; not serving its purpose; hopeless; wasted; cannot; must not
be; is; did; (have) done; please; do
this; last (couple of years, etc.); these; you (as in "you liar")
too; also; both A and B; A as well as B; even; as much as
to come together; to merge; to fit; to match; to be profitable; to be equitable
to use (a thing, method, etc.); to make use of; to use (a person, animal, puppet, etc.); to employ; to use (time, money, etc.); to spend
to; for; in order to; for; as for; regarding
to become; to get; to result in; to turn out; to consist of; to be composed of; to be completed
from time immemorial; ancient; time-honoured; time-honored
world; society; life; lifetime; age; era; reign
disorder; chaos; confusion; mayhem