背水の陣 (Haisui no jin): Idiom Meaning “Last-Stand Moment”

Pronunciation

Definition

背水の陣 (はいすいのじん, haisui no jin) is an advanced Japanese idiom that means that you’re facing a last stand and there is nowhere to retreat to. This idiom is very similar to the English expression “one’s back against the wall”, but it emphasises that one has to pull out all the stops to overcome a challenging situation. Therefore, even if you use this word to refer to your undesirable situation, it sounds rather cool and positive. This phrase is often used as “背水の陣で臨のぞむ”, meaning “tackle something by pulling out all the stops in the last stand”, where “臨む (のぞむ)” means “tackle” or “work on”.

Word Structure

背水の陣 consists of the two words “背水はいすい” and “陣じん” with one particle “の” between them. The first word contains the two kanji characters “背はい” meaning “back” and “水すい” meaning “water”, and indicates that one’s back is against the water. The latter word “陣” means “a group of soldiers”. Therefore, 背水の陣 illustrates the soldiers in the last stand with their back against the water, pulling out all the stops to fight against their opponents.

Synonyms

Indeed, there are several synonyms of 背水の陣, such as:

四面しめん楚歌そか: a challenging situation where you’re surrounded by people who are all against you.

八方はっぽう塞ふさがり: a tough situation where there is an obstacle in every direction

絶体ぜったい絶命ぜつめい: a hopeless and desperate situation; a last stand

万事ばんじ休きゅうす: a hopeless situation where there is nothing you can do

* Compared to 背水の陣, these phrases have much more negative connotations.

Example Sentences

Ex1
背水の陣でこの仕事しごとに取とり組くんだ
I tackled this work by pulling out all the stops in the last stand.

Ex2
リーグ優勝ゆうしょうするためには、何なにが何なんでもこの試合しあいで勝かたなくてはならない。まさに背水の陣だ。
In order to win the league, we must achieve a victory in this match at all cost. This is exactly the last stand.

Ex3
背水の陣で臨のぞんだ田中たなかが今期こんき初勝利はつしょうりを収おさめた
Tanaka, who faced the game in his last stand, scored the first victory in this season.

Synonyms: 四面しめん楚歌そか, 八方はっぽう塞ふさがり, 絶体ぜったい絶命ぜつめい, 万事ばんじ休きゅうす
Synonyms in English: last stand, with one’s back against the wall, at the end of one’s rope
Related words and phrases: None