beginning; outset; first; onset
to show; to display; to make (something or someone) look ...; to present an appearance of ...; to make (something) worth watching; to be entertaining; to have (something) looked at (by a specialist)
gradually; steadily; slowly; little by little; step by step; by degrees
seeing is believing; one eye-witness is better than many hearsays; a picture is worth a thousand words
probably not; probably won't; intend not to; will not; trying not to; attempting not to; whether you ... or not
feelings; thoughts; meaning
to return (something); to restore; to turn over; to turn upside down; to pay back; to retaliate; to respond (with)
one (thin, flat object); one sheet
to take out; to produce; to pick out; to fetch; to retrieve
floor; stage (for the narrator and the shamisen player); dining platform built across a river
(made of) stone; stone-built
to throw; to toss; to fling; to abandon (one's work); to give up; to lay aside
scattered; disperse; loose; disconnected; in pieces; in drops
to break (into pieces); to be broken; to collapse; to crumble; to become less formal; to throw off reserve
crushing (into pieces); smashing; cracking; breaking up
sound; noise; (speech) sound; Chinese-derived reading of a kanji
to reverberate; to resound; to echo; to have one's fame spread; to be renowned
yikes!; eek!; ook; eek; customer
feminine; womanly; female
loose; lenient; lax; gentle (curve, slope, etc.); slow; weak; soft
terrible; dreadful; amazing (e.g. of strength); great (e.g. of skills); to a great extent; vast (in numbers)
no matter (what, who, etc.); whether ... or ...; be
to drop; to lose; to clean off (dirt, makeup, paint, etc.); to remove (e.g. stains or facial hair); to lose (a match); to reject (an applicant); to lower (e.g. shoulders or voice)
it cannot be that ...; it is highly unlikely that ...; it is impossible that ...
even so; however; still; whereupon; even though; nevertheless
thin board; veneer; thin sheet of steel (3 mm or less); thin cloth; square wooden vase stand
wound; injury; chip; crack; flaw; defect
barely; narrowly; only just; with difficulty
every person; each one; everybody
eye; eyeball; eyesight; sight; look; stare; notice
round; circular; curved; smooth; harmonious; calm
prior; beforehand; in advance; before the fact; ex ante
space; room; unused land; room (for reconsideration, doubt, etc.); leeway; margin
still; much more; (not) yet; still a long way to go; still a long way off; not there yet
manufacturing; processing; treatment; machining
method; way; manner; process; procedure; means
abrasive compound; abrading agent; abradant; polishing agent
to polish; to shine; to burnish; to refine (a skill, etc.); to improve; to hone
direction; way; person; lady; method of; manner of; care of ...
spirit; heart; disposition
including ...; inclusive of ...; bundling together (items of different size, quality, etc.); lumping together; komi; extra points given to the white player as compensation for playing second
special characteristic; special quality; trait; idiosyncrasy; peculiarity
to have two things (at the same time) (e.g. good and bad points); to also have something (in addition to something else)
to cast; to mint; to coin