index finger; forefinger; first (occ. second) finger; second toe
left and right; right and left; (asserting) control; influence; one's attendants; people accompanying one
to wave; to shake; to sprinkle; to throw (dice); to cast (actor); to allocate (work); to turn down (someone)
social; societal; societary
valuation; appraisal; evaluation; appreciation; recognition; acknowledgement
operation; management; handling; manipulating (to one's benefit); manipulation; influencing
general public; the masses
public opinion; popular voice; public sentiment; consensus
because ...; for ...; the reason being ...; as for ...; when it comes to ...; regarding ...
important; essential; significant; major; key; principal
element; component; factor; element (e.g. in array); member (e.g. data structure)
have to (do, be); must (do, be); is indispensable; is absolutely necessary
claim; insistence; assertion; advocacy; emphasis; contention
we; us; I; me; my store (business, etc.)
mechanism; machinery; system; structure; organization
popular name; common name; nickname; alias
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; MEXT
independent administrative institution; independent administrative agency
as (i.e. in the role of); for (i.e. from the viewpoint of); apart from ... (used to change the topic); even (e.g. "not even a single person"); thinking that ...; trying to ...
year; counter for years (e.g. of an era), grades (e.g. school); period of an apprentice's contract (usu. ten years)
starting; inauguration; launch; founding; establishment; start-up
opening (a new store, golf course, runway, etc.); open; frank; open (car, collar, tournament, etc.)
on the way; en route; in the middle of; midway; halfway
really; truly; indeed; good grief
(spoken) line (in a play, film, comic, etc.); one's lines; comment; remark; stock phrase; set phrase
to taste; to eat; to drink; to speak (of); to put into words; to refer (to)
country; state; region; national government; central government; home (i.e. hometown, home country); province (of Japan)
corporation; corporate body; company; legal entity; legal person; juridical person
top; top position; senior management; senior bureaucrat; home page (of a website)
any more; anymore; any further; any better; any longer
probably not; probably won't; intend not to; will not; trying not to; attempting not to; whether you ... or not
that's the way it is; such is life
indictment; prosecution; complaint
to laugh at; to ridicule; to mock; to make fun of; to sneer at
mwahahaha (evil laughter); coo coo; cooing; stifled laughter; suppressed laughter; sound of snagging
unauthorized (computer) access; hacking
event; affair; incident; case; plot; trouble
putting (a named suspect) on the wanted list
strange; weird; wonder; mystery; cleverness; adroitness
innocence; guiltlessness; absence of the fact; insubstantiality; (arch.) insincerity; (arch.) dishonesty
it is assuredly (that) ...; can say with confidence that it is ...
police; police officer; police station; self-appointed enforcer (of a rule, standard, etc.); busybody
fabrication; forgery; falsehood; hoax