＜prologue＞
I started a blog called “The Baby Boomer Generation’s Miscellaneous Blog”（Dankai-sedai no garakutatyou:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳） in July 2018, about a year before I fully retired. More than six years have passed since then, and the number of articles has increased considerably.
So, in order to make them accessible to people who don’t understand Japanese, I decided to translate my past articles into English and publish them.
It may sound a bit exaggerated, but I would like to make this my life’s work.
It should be noted that haiku and waka （Japanese short fixed form poems） are quite difficult to translate into English, so some parts are written in Japanese.
If you are interested in haiku or waka and would like to know more, please read introductory or specialized books on haiku or waka written in English.
I also write many articles about the Japanese language. I would be happy if these inspire more people to want to learn Japanese.
my blog’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳 | 団塊世代が雑学や面白い話を発信しています
my X’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多帳（@historia49）さん / X
I previously wrote an article on “Commonly Misunderstood Japanese Words,” but there are still many more, so I’ll introduce the second installment.
(1) The Difference Between “Gantan（元旦）” and “Ganjitsu（元日）”
“Gantan” originally refers to “dawn or sunrise on January 1st,” so it means “the morning of January 1st.” Incidentally, “旦” is a kanji character that represents the sun rising above the horizon.
“Ganjitsu” means “January 1st.”
(2) “Ki ga(no) okenai hito”(A Person You Can Be Comfortable With)
（「気が（の）置けない人」）
This refers to “someone you’re close enough to that you don’t need to be reserved or careful about.” It doesn’t mean “someone you can’t trust” or “someone you can’t let your guard down with.”
(3) “Geki wo tobasu”(To make a speech)(「檄を飛ばす」)
“To inform people of one’s opinions and ideas and seek their agreement.” It does not mean “to encourage” or “to motivate.”
The speech delivered by Oshio Heihachiro during the “Oshio Heihachiro Rebellion” is a famous example.
(4) “Gesewa”(Vulgar)(「下世話」)
“The general conversation of people in the secular world.” It does not mean “vulgar talk or conversation.”
(5) “Koutetsu” (Replacement)（「更迭」）
This means “replacing someone in a certain position or role with another.” It does not mean “firing someone.” This term is often used when replacing a minister or high-ranking bureaucrat due to a scandal, so some people seem to confuse it.
(6) “Koharubiyori” (Indian Spring)（「小春日和」）
This means “warm, spring-like weather from the end of autumn to the beginning of winter.” It does not mean “weather that signals the arrival of spring from the beginning of the new year to the beginning of spring.”
(7) “Satsukibare” (Clear May Days)（「五月晴れ」）
It refers to “clear weather during the rainy season in the fifth month of the lunar calendar (around June today).” It does not refer to “clear weather in the current month of May.” The Japan Meteorological Agency also uses the term “clear weather in May,” but I find it strange that weather forecasters and female announcers sometimes refer to it as “clear weather in May.”
In the past, Norihei Miki sang in a Momoya commercial, “Clear weather during the rainy season is called clear weather in May.”
(8) Samidare (May Rain)（「五月雨」）
It means “rain that falls continuously in the fifth month of the lunar calendar (around June today). It refers to the rainy season.” It does not refer to “rain that falls in the current month of May.”
Matsuo Basho has a haiku poem called “The May rain gathers and speeds up the Mogami River.（＊）”
（＊）「五月雨を集めて早し最上川」
This is not a haiku about elegantly gazing at the rapids of the Mogami River from the riverbank. It means “the rain of the rainy season gathers on the Mogami River, forming a torrent and flowing with ferocious force.” It describes “the incredible scene of Basho enjoying the thrill of a riverboat ride down the raging torrent of the Mogami River under clear May skies.” This goes beyond “insanity.”
Often used in business settings, “May rain style” means “a long, intermittent process” and is used when documents or work are handed over gradually rather than all at once.
(9) “Shiodoki”（「潮時」）
It means “the time when the tide is rising or falling” or “the right time or opportunity to start or finish something.”
Today, it is often used to mean “the right time to stop” or “the timing to stop doing something,” as in “It’s about time to stop.”
(10) “Shissyo”(Snigger)(「失笑」)
It means “to burst out laughing without thinking” or “to burst out laughing because something is so funny.” It does not mean “to be so shocked that you can’t laugh at all.”
(11) The Difference Between “Jakkan（弱冠）” (Young Crown) and “Jakkan（若干）” (Slightly)
“Jakkan（弱冠）” means “to be too young to accomplish something” or “a 20-year-old boy.” “Jakkan（若干）” means “not clearly defined, but not very numerous.”
(12) “Shorou” (Premature Elderly)（「初老」）
“Past middle age, approaching old age” or “another term for someone 40 years old.” In today’s world, where average life expectancy has increased, this word is more appropriate for someone around 50-60 years old.
(13) “Sukoburu” (Exceedingly)（「頗る」）
Originally meaning “a little, a little, or a little,” it is now used to mean “quite a bit, very much.”
(14) “Celebrity”（「セレブ」）
An abbreviation of “celebrity,” this word refers to a “famous person or famous person.” It is incorrect to use it to mean “rich or very wealthy.”
(15) “Tariki Hongan” (Relying on Other Power)（「他力本願（たりきほんがん）」）
This does not mean “relying on the power of others.” “Tariki” is a Buddhist term that refers to the power of Amida Buddha, and “hongan” means “not the desire to fulfill human desires, but the desire to enable all people to attain Buddhahood.”
In other words, it means “not attaining enlightenment through personal training, but being saved by the power of the Buddha.” It does not mean “leaving or relying on others without making any personal effort.”
(16) “Danmatsuma” (Death Throes)（「断末魔」）
“The moment of death.” It does not mean “the scream of death.”
(17) “Tenchi Muyo” (Tenchi Muyo)(「天地無用」)
“Do not turn things upside down.” It does not mean “it is okay to turn things upside down.”
(18) “Toryumon” (Gate to Success)（「登竜門」）
It means “passing through a difficult hurdle, such as an exam or contest, or overcoming the hurdle and succeeding.” It is not “the exam or contest itself.”
(19) “Nashikuzushi”(Gradually)（「なし崩し」）
Originally, it means “paying off debt little by little” or “tidying things up little by little.” It is not “going with the flow,” “leaving things vague,” “being ambiguous,” or “going in an increasingly worse direction.”
(20) “Namaemake”(Name’s Disadvantages)(「名前負け」)
It means “having a prestigious name but being inferior in person.” It is not “being emotionally defeated by a famous opponent.”
(21) “Nitsumaru”(Being simmered)(「煮詰まる」)
It means “a state in which a conclusion has been reached after thorough discussion.” It does not mean “a state in which no more ideas can be generated and one is at a loss.”
(22) “Niyakeru” (Smirk)(「にやける」)
Originally, it meant “a man looking effeminate.” In modern times, it means “a silent smirk or grin.”
(23) “Bakusho” (Laughing Out Loud)(「爆笑」)
It means “a large group of people laughing at the same time.” It does not mean “laughing out loud.”
(24) “Hacker” (「ハッカー」)
Originally, it meant “someone who is well-versed in computers and other information technology.” It does not refer to “someone who commits crimes using computers (crackers),” but “crackers” are commonly referred to as “hackers.”
(25) “Buzen” (Disgruntled)（「憮然」）
It means “disappointed or disheartened when things do not go as planned.” It does not mean “a sulky or dissatisfied state when things do not go as planned.”
(26) “Mizugashi” (Water Fruit)（「水菓子」）
It means “fruit.” It does not mean “watery sweets such as mizu yokan or jelly.”
(27) The difference between “yakubusoku（「役不足」）” (lack of ability) and “chikarabusoku（「力不足」）” (lack of power)
“Inadequate for one’s role” means “the role is too light for one’s abilities.” In contrast, “insufficient for one’s abilities” means “not being able to carry out the given task or role.”
(28) “Yabusakadenai”（Not unwilling to）（「やぶさかでない」）
This means “willing to cooperate in something.” It does not mean “willing to do something.”
(29) “Rannyu”（Intrusion）（「乱入（らんにゅう）」）
This means “a large number of people rushing in all at once.” It does not mean “a violent surge, or an unrelated person barging in.”
(30) “Revenge”（「リベンジ」）
This means “to take revenge,” not “to try again.”