somehow; for some reason; without knowing why
to stop (in one's tracks); to come to a stop; to halt; to pause; to stand still
grave; sad; mournful; sorrowful; pensive
good story; heartwarming story; good prospect (e.g. marriage, business)
presentiment; premonition; hunch; to have a premonition; to have a hunch
hitting the target; striking home; proving to be right; coming true; being on the mark
function; facility; faculty; feature
processing; dealing with; treatment; disposition; disposal
to refuse; to reject; to decline; to prevent (from doing); to deny (e.g. access); to block
before one's eyes; in front of one; under one's nose; immediate; imminent; around the corner
other than; excluding; without
please; somehow or other; one way or another
earnest; sincere; pressing; urgent; pertinent; appropriate
to cure; to heal; to fix; to correct; to do over again; to replace
concentration; diligence; asceticism; zeal in one's quest for enlightenment; adherence to a vegetarian diet
to speak; to say; to vocalize
although I say; although one might say; although called
each time; always; often; thank you for your continued patronage
to be upset; to lose one's composure; to lose self-control; to put in disorder; to mess up; to disturb
to deceive; to falsify; to dodge; to beg the question (issue, difficulties); to varnish over; to gloss over
clearing one's throat; cough
half-moon; half a month; semicircle
third day of the month; three days
discouraged; dispirited; despondent
to feel down; to feel sad; to be in a slump (business, economy, etc.); to be in an unfavourable condition; to fall into (e.g. a hole)
New Year's holiday; period encompassing the close of the old year and the start of the New Year
greeting; a fine thing to say
pretext; history; past; according to ...; ... says
customer; client; client company; business connection; trade partner
custom; convention; tradition; mores; conventional practice
political and business circles; political and business establishment; politics and industry
people; (all) persons; you (usu. plural); various
crowd of people; great number of people; in great numbers
to shave (wood, leather, etc.); to sharpen (e.g. pencil); to cut down (budget, expenses, staff, time, etc.); to curtail; to delete; to erase
New Year (esp. first three days); first month of the year; January
homecoming; returning home
parent; parents; dealer (in cards, mahjong, etc.); banker; founder; inventor; (pet) owner
still more; to say nothing of; not to mention; still less
important ceremonial occasions in family relationships
to be a match for; to rival; to equal; to compare with; to be equivalent to
to that extent; accordingly; that being the case; that state; that condition
least; lowest; worst; awful; horrible; at the very least
twenty-eighth day of the month; twenty-eight days