to defy accepted norms; to go off the rails; to be eccentric
off the mark; off base; misdirected; irrelevant
high; noble; refined; advanced
to get dark; to grow dark; to end (of a day, year, season, etc.); to come to an end; to be sunk in (e.g. despair); to be lost in (e.g. thought)
to take seriously; to take someone at their word; to believe (to be true)
perfect; just right; ideal
countermeasures to the falling birthrate
scream; shriek; shout; exclamation
article; discourse; dissertation; editorial; leading article; leader
disregarding; taking no account of; ignoring; overlooking
to swing; to wield (physically); to exercise (e.g. power, ability); to exhibit; to flourish; to prosper
tone (of speech, writing, etc.); style
quantity; amount; volume; number; amount of money
proof; evidence; certificate; license; to testify (usu. Christian religious context); enlightenment
degree (angle, temperature, scale, etc.); counter for occurrences; strength (of glasses); glasses prescription; alcohol content (percentage); alcohol by volume; extent
to apply correspondingly; to correspond to; to be proportionate to; to conform to
new breed of humans (used to refer to the younger generation, who have different ideals and sensibilities)
theory; doctrine; opinion; view; rumour; rumor
divine messenger; messenger of a god (esp. an animal messenger)
gods and men; godlike person; person as powerful as a god; (arch.) low-ranking Shinto priest
absurd; nonsensical; preposterous
belief; faith; adherence; espousal
taking up a new line of work; the beginning of things; starting the preparations for New Year's festivities (December 8 in Tokyo, December 13 in Kyoto); resuming work after the New Year's vacation
various; varied; diverse; all sorts of
to have a (rough) idea (of what the situation is)
to stake; to risk; to bet; to wager
self-esteem; self-respect; self-importance; conceit; pride
to spread; to extend; to unfold; to open; to scatter about; to spread around
yielding; submission; surrender; giving way; succumbing
... being the case; (precisely) because ...; as might be expected from ...
sympathy; agreement with; alignment; conformity; tuning
like-mindedness; (being of the) same mind; shared sentiment; comrade; fellow; kindred soul
to increase; to add to; to augment
whole story; full picture; full particulars
not straightforward; not dealt with by ordinary means
one of these days; someday; one day
members; member; constituent
to challenge (esp. in a lawsuit); to take on an opponent (in negotiations, contest, etc.)
to shuffle (on one's bottom or knees); to crawl; to shift position (of an object)