from the beginning; from the first; all along; of course
same generation; one's generation
amount sold; sales; proceeds; takings; turnover
delay; lag; postponement; falling behind
Golden Week (early-May holiday season in Japan)
gradually; slowly but steadily
these days; nowadays; recently
originally; essentially; naturally; in the first place; to begin with
hard-boiled (person, style, etc.); tough; hard-boiled fiction
extraordinarily; astonishingly; extremely; terribly; unreasonably; absurdly
even a little; any at all; if only a little; no matter how little
cool; refreshing; clear (e.g. eyes); bright; clear; distinct
day on which the temperature rises above 30 degrees Celsius
extremely hot day; day on which the temperature rises above 35 degrees Celsius (official definition)
high temperature and humidity
sign of life; human presence; humanity; humaneness
absolute; complete; utter; pure; sheer
group; crowd; flock; herd; bevy; school
apathetic; lackadaisical; spiritless; physically weak; feeble; effeminate
life; existence; (one's) working life; career; life force; lifeblood
carnivore; carnivorous animal
to attack; to assail; to succeed (someone in a post, role, etc.); to make a sudden visit
(living) sacrifice; victim; scapegoat
innocent look; nonchalant look; look of ignorance; air of innocence
grass; weed; (arch.) ninja; not genuine; substandard; LOL
food; foodstuff; prey; victim
to crowd; to flock; to swarm
lone wolf; loner; self-reliant person
dance hall; dance floor; landing (stairs); leveling off (e.g. in the economy); period of stagnation
disorder; confusion; clutter; mess; muddle; disarray
to be tied together; to be connected to; to lead to; to be related to; to be related (by blood)
to shut; to close; to block (a street, entrance, etc.); to shut in (with snow, ice, etc.); to shut off; to consume (with negative feelings)
jingle; jangle; chatty; nattering; coquettish; tawdry
blockade; lockdown; sealing off (an area); freezing (funds)
ability to take action; ability to take initiatives; energy; dynamism; drive
meanwhile; in the meantime; by the same token; in contrast
judging from; on the basis of; from the point of view of
beyond this point; from now on; after this
when it comes to ...; where ... is concerned; if it's the case that ...; if it turns out that ...; if it's true that ...