dry riverbed; river beach
to wet; to moisten; to dampen; to soak; to dip
call of a wild goose; wild goose (esp. a lesser white-fronted goose, Anser erythropus); tea made from twigs of high-quality tea plants (esp. gyokuro); high-grade kukicha (esp. from gyokuro)
curtain; bunting; act (in play)
Milky Way; luminous band corresponding to the plane of the galaxy
shallows; shoal; rapids; current; position; place
middle of the night; dead of night
similar instance; similar case; parallel case; analogy
before one knows; before one becomes aware of; unnoticed; unawares
cautious; careful; shrewd; tactful; prudent; faultless
to fit into (a box, frame, category, etc.); to be contained within; to settle down (into); to be installed (in one's rightful place); to settle into (one's position); to take up (a post); to be delivered
and so; therefore; for that reason
wildness (plants, animals, etc.); uncouth; rough; unpolished
polish (jewels); cultivation
such; like that; in that way
poverty; penury; need; shortage; lack; want
having to be; must be; should be; ought to be
rod; pole; neck (of a shamisen, etc.); shamisen; beam (i.e. the crossbar of a balance); single line (esp. as a flying formation for geese); penis
summary; generalization; generalisation
(ancient) Japan; Yamato (former province located in present-day Nara Prefecture)
longing; yearning; aspiration; adoration
succession; accession; inheritance
to strain; to stretch; to string up; to cover over (e.g. with tiles, ice, etc.)
the front; honesty; uprightness; decency; normality
severe; intense; awe-inspiring; biting; bitter (cold); piercing
slack; slackening; sagginess; dullness; letdown; depression
Star Festival (held in July or August); Tanabata; Festival of the Weaver
dim; vague; indistinct; faint; obscure
the way there; outbound leg; bound for ...; outbound ticket
to burn; to roast; to broil; to heat; to heat up; to make (charcoal, pottery, bricks, etc.); to bake
to turn; to shift; to alter; to distract
brilliance; luster; lustre; vividness; life
Carex alopecuroides var. chlorostachya (species of sedge)
child; kid; (one's) child; offspring; young (animal); young woman; offshoot
just; right; pure; genuine; truth
original; primitive; primary; fundamental; raw
to break by hand (e.g. a flower); to break off (a twig); to pluck (a flower, a bud); to make a young woman one's own thing
floor; stage (for the narrator and the shamisen player); dining platform built across a river
cold (to the touch); chilly; icy; (emotionally) cold; coldhearted; unfeeling