I wish I had ...; I should have ...; it would have been better if I had ...
fetters; shackles; hobbles; encumbrance; hindrance; burden
supporter; sponsor; patron; backer
marriage proposal; marriage talks
all over the country; everywhere in the country; throughout the nation
badness; evilness; bad; evil
helping a long-term employee to establish a branch of the same shop
number two; mistress; concubine
when push comes to shove; when needed; when necessity arises; when the moment arrives
elite; best; pick; cream of the crop
to be interested in; to take an interest in; to care about
grandfather; old man; kyogen mask used for the role of an old man
to talk down; to corner someone in an argument
one's speciality; one's forte; one's strong point
candidacy; standing as a candidate; bidding (to host an event, e.g. the Olympics)
unskilled; not very good at
change in pronunciation or meaning of a word; sound change; word with an altered pronunciation or meaning; turning or twisting part of a text (in Chinese poetry)
in order; sequential; seriatim
to look dead on the inside; to have a blank expression
how should I know?; don't ask me
to regard (as); to recognize (as); to see as; to pay attention to; to watch
news of someone's death; obituary
indolence; laziness; sloth
to content oneself with; to be resigned to (one's fate); to be contented (satisfied) with (one's lot)
to gouge; to hollow out; to greatly perturb; to cause emotional pain; to get to the bottom of things; to relentlessly bring the truth to light
small pieces; fragments; chopped meat; scraps (of beef, pork, etc.)
persecution complex; paranoia
strong opposition; vehement opposition
to become animated; to liven up; to become active
to make a cynical remark (about); to make a sarcastic remark (about); to satirize; to mock
to raise an objection; to voice an opinion different from those of others
dull; uninteresting; insignificant; unimportant; absurd; foolish
end; close; finish; noh dance in plain clothes
after the end (of something); post-
to close up; to shut up (e.g. behind doors); to cut off (e.g. because a deadline has expired); to close off (e.g. subscription list)
be on your guard!; take care!
to wear the mantle of (borrowed) authority and misuse it
helper; supporter; second; foreign player (hired to strengthen a team)
to produce (e.g. movie, play, show, event, musical recording, etc.); to design (e.g. new commercial product, restaurant concept, etc.); to create; production; creation; design
preparation; arrangements