Yomi かもがねぎをしょってくる Rōmaji kamo ga negi o shotte kuru Type idiom Literal Meaning A duck comes carrying a leek on its back Meaning A gullible target/victim acts in a way that brings an ideal opportunity to the attacker, e.g. swindlers (due to their ignorance/naiveness) Additional Info In Japanese, カモ (“a duck”) often indicates a gullible target, like “a sitting duck” in English. This expression is quite likely the origin of the Pokémon カモネギ (Farfetch’d). Note that 背負う usually reads せおう, but its casual/colloquial pronunciation しょう is more commonly used for this expression. Example さとるは彼女が詐欺師だと知らずに、彼女に投資の相談をしてしまった。これぞ正に、「鴨が葱を背負って来る」だ。 Without knowing that she is a scammer, he asked for her advice on investment. This is…Read More

Yomi てのひらをかえす Rōmaji te no hira o kaesu Type idiom Literal Meaning to flip one’s palm Meaning to change one’s tune after something unexpected has happened Additional Info It’s often used when one suddenly and completely changes his/her opinion about someone after they achieve something good or bad. Example 昨日までは多くの人が「あいつはクソだ」と言ってあの監督を批判していたのに、大事な試合に勝った途端に「天才だ！」と称賛し、手のひらを返した。 Until yesterday, a lot of people had been criticising the head coach, saying, “He is sh*t”. But once his team won the important match, they changed their tune and commended him, saying “He is a genius!”Read More

Yomi できあがる Rōmaji dekiagaru Type idiom Meaning to become completed to get drunk and be in a good mood Synonym 酔う, 酔っ払う Antonym しらふ Additional Info It is often used to describe people who are apparently being drunk and having a good time (which does not always mean a good time for other people). Example 今朝、彼の作品が出来上がった。 His work got completed this morning. 太郎、さっきから楽しそうに同じ話ばかりしてる。もう出来上がっているな Taro has been happily talking about the same thing for a while. Apparently, he has got drunk already and is now having a good time. Related Post Essential Japanese Words About Drinking/SakeRead More