dodoitsu; unrhymed non-metrical Japanese popular love song or limerick in the 7-7-7-5 syllable pattern
to take advantage of; to follow blindly; to multiply
competition; contest; rivalry; competition (between organisms or species)
red-light district; pleasure quarters; world of the geisha; demimonde
shirokuban (paper size of 127x188mm); duodecimo
cover (of a book, magazine, etc.); binding; to appear on the cover of a magazine
shamisen; samisen; three-stringed Japanese lute
plectrum (for a shamisen, biwa, etc.); pick; drumstick (for taiko); mallet (for a gong); beater
cat (esp. the domestic cat, Felis catus); feline; shamisen; geisha; wheelbarrow; clay bed-warmer; bottom (submissive partner of a homosexual relationship)
picture; drawing; painting; image (TV, film, etc.); picture; footage
such; this sort of; like this
thank you; thanks; much (thanks); very (sorry); quite; really; somehow
extensive knowledge; erudition; learned; erudite; well-informed
as (for); for; in the capacity of
Bakumatsu period; closing days of the Tokugawa shogunate; end of the Edo period
village along a (large) river
zhen (one of the trigrams of the I Ching: thunder, east)
ken (6 shaku, approx. 1.818 m); counter used to number the gaps between pillars
tenement house; row house
by the way; incidentally; sometimes; occasionally; precisely (at that time); exactly
to deliver; to extradite; to stretch across; to hand over
use; utilization; utilisation; application
Edo (shogunate capital; former name of Tokyo); Yedo
circumference; outskirts; environs; (computer) peripheral
relation; connection; affinity
to want; to wish for; to request; to demand; to seek; to search for
hidden historical background
cupboard; locker; closet; wardrobe; cabinet
feather; plume; wing; shuttlecock (in badminton)
considerably; fairly; quite; rather; pretty
to receive favor; to receive assistance; to receive help; to be looked after; to be taken care of; to become dependent (on)
injury; wound; mistake; accident; loss
visit (to someone affected by illness or misfortune); call; inquiry (about someone's health); letter of inquiry; letter of sympathy; get-well letter
always; all the time; constantly; frequently; often
next (e.g. "next April"); forthcoming; coming; to come; to arrive; to be due to
to put on airs; to throw one's weight about; to swagger; to act arrogantly
from the standpoint of; from the viewpoint of; on; above; the best; top
trend; tendency; momentum
to turn toward; to look (up, down, etc.); to face (e.g. east) (of a building, window, etc.); to look out on; to point (of an arrow, compass needle, etc.); to be suited to
Metropolis (of Tokyo); (Tokyo) Metropolitan District; counter for cities and towns; capital
just because; even if; even though
new book; new publication
one after another; in rapid succession
that is to say; so that means