deviation value (usu. scaled to mean of 50, standard deviation of 10, and often used for academic grades); deviation; T-score; standard score
cram school; private tutoring school; juku
samadhi (state of intense concentration achieved through meditation); being immersed in; being absorbed in; prone to; apt to
someone who studies very hard (at school); grind; swot; studying hard; cramming; swotting
to benefit; to profit; to gain; to reap rewards
shell; husk; hull; pod; chaff
finally; barely; only just; gradually
red; crimson; red-containing colour (e.g. brown, pink, orange); Red (i.e. communist); red light (traffic); red ink (i.e. in finance or proof-reading); (in) the red
to forget oneself; to lose control of oneself
beat; palpitation; pulsation; throbbing
to keep within limits (e.g. spending); to restrain (e.g. emotions); to control; to hold back (e.g. an enemy); to check; to curb
going to the hospital for regular treatment
time after time; countless times; many a time; dozens of times
good story; heartwarming story; good prospect (e.g. marriage, business)
confession; acknowledgement; confession of love; professing one's feelings; confession of sins (e.g. the confessional)
to be convinced (that); to be under the impression (that); to make up one's mind; to set one's heart on; to be obsessed (with a thought, idea, etc.); to think about obsessively
artificial; unnatural; human-caused (e.g. mistake, error, disaster); man-made
conclusive evidence; positive proof; definite proof; confirmation
to deepen; to heighten; to intensify
participation; taking part in; participating in; being concerned in
difficulty; hardship; trouble; infeasibility; inability (to carry out)
sense of relief; feeling of relief
failing to properly evaluate the (relative) importance (of); putting the cart before the horse; mistaking the cause for the end; mistaking the insignificant for the essential; getting one's priorities backwards
earnest desire; eager hope; longing; yearning; hankering
maintenance; preservation; improvement
misconstruction; distortion; misinterpretation; misunderstanding; perversion; contortion
effeminate; unmanly; cowardly; sissy
translation; version (e.g. "English version")
several times; a few times
swing; shake; appearance; behaviour; pretence (pretense); show; going to restaurant, hotel etc. without a reservation or introduction
just now; a moment ago; this very minute
what?!; what did you say?!; why?; what for?; anyone; anything
thin; skinny; delicate; fragile; feeble
full of (e.g. mistakes); riddled with; covered all over with (blood, mud, etc.)
to catch sight of; to come into view; to happen to see
excess; surplus; superabundance; overabundance
horizontal (as opposed to vertical); lying down; side-to-side (as opposed to front-to-back); width; side (of a box, etc.); beside