waste of labor or energy; waste of labour; vain effort
overlooking; turning a blind eye
wait-and-see (situation, stance, etc.); waiting to see (how things play out); watching developments (before acting); probe; probing move
dropping in on the way; stopping off at; making a side trip; going the long way round; making a detour
to encourage; to cheer on; to cheer (someone) up; to raise (one's voice)
to compromise; to meet halfway; to step up to; to walk up to; to approach
to be lucky; to be in luck; to be attached; to have; to be included
mochi; small rice cake made from glutinous rice
argument; discussion; theory (e.g. of evolution); doctrine; essay; treatise
to avoid meeting someone's gaze; to not look someone in the eyes
to fall and pile up (e.g. snow); to lie thick
moat; fosse; canal; ditch
castle; citadel; fortress; castle walls; enclosure
inner citadel; core; center; centre
tourist attraction; sight-seeing area
sacred place; holy ground; the Holy Land; real-life location used as a setting in a novel, film, anime, etc.
popular; folksy; plebeian; ordinary; unpretentious
solemn; sublime; grand; magnificent; impressive
to warm oneself (e.g. at a fire)
to push through (a crowd, vegetation, etc.)
bar; bolt (e.g. on door); double-arm lock; (rope) cinching
castle (in place names); castle; fortress
to make good; to improve; to do often; to be kind to; to treat well
papier-mâché; something that looks good superficially; sham
to look old; to become time-worn; to become worn out; to become old and grubby; to become musty
straw-thatching; straw-thatched roof
single-storied house; single-storied building
to jar; to creak; to grate
sparse; thin; scattered; straggling; sporadic
slope; inclination; tendency; trend; slope (of a linear function)
true; real; genuine; proper; utter
rag; old cloth; tattered clothes; ragged clothes; fault (one is trying to hide); defect
brocade; fine dress; fine clothes
it's OK to ...; it's best to ...; it's alright to ...
really; very; extremely; terribly; awfully
public finance; financial affairs; financial situation