＜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) on X
(Reference) Original article in Japanese
・漢字でどう書くのか意外と知らない言葉、ほとぼり、ひやかし、ほだされるなど
Have you ever wondered how to write a word you use casually in everyday life using kanji?
This time, I’d like to introduce some such words.
While they are often written in hiragana in modern times, they are frequently written in kanji, although you might find some “ateji” (phonetic equivalents) in novels from the Meiji, Taisho, or early Showa periods (pre-war).
1. hotobori
The meanings are: ① “lingering heat, residual heat,” ② “the lingering effects of heightened emotions or excitement,” and ③ “public interest that remains for a while after an incident or event has subsided.”
It is written in kanji as “熱り” or “余熱.”
2. hiyashi
The meanings are: ① “to tease or make jokes,” ② “to look around at merchandise without intending to buy anything, or the person who does so,” and ③ “to look around at prostitutes without intending to enter a brothel, or the person who does so.”
It is written as “冷やかし” in kanji, but for ② and ③, it can also be written as “素見.”
3. hodasareru
The meanings are: ① “to be drawn in by emotion, and have one’s freedom of mind or action restricted,” and ② “to have one’s physical freedom restricted.”
It is written as “絆される” in kanji.
4. potsunento
The meaning is “the state of being alone, doing nothing, and looking lonely.”
It is written in kanji as “孑然” or “徒然.” Note that the “孑” in “孑然” is read as “hitori” (hitori), not the “子” in “kodomo” (child).
As an aside, “孑孑” is read as “boufura” or “ketsuketsu.”
5. bonyari
The meaning is ① “being absent-minded and lacking focus, or a person who is absent-minded,” or ② “the state of things appearing blurry, with unclear shapes and colors.”
It is written in kanji as “茫然” or “呆然.”
6. itaikena
The meaning is ① “the pitiful and endearing state of a child,” ② “young and cute,” or ③ “small and adorable.”
It is written in kanji as “幼気な.”
7. itokenai
The meaning is “young and small.”
It is written in kanji as “幼い” or “稚い.”
Note that there is a word “itaikenai,” which is a confusion between “itokenai” and “itaikena,” but this means “being childlike (itaikena).”
8. boya
The meaning is “a fire that was extinguished before it grew large.”
It is written in kanji as “小火.”
9. tsumasii
The meaning is “a lifestyle that is not extravagant, but simple and frugal.”
It is written in kanji as “倹しい” or “約しい.” It’s exactly like “frugality.”
10. tsutsumasii
The meaning is ① “having a reserved attitude, being modest and demure,” ② “not extravagant, being simple,” ③ “feeling intimidated or embarrassed around others.”
It is written in kanji as “慎ましい.”
11. tsuratsura
Meaning: “To think about or observe things carefully.”
Written in kanji as “熟,” “熟々 (熟熟),” or “倩.”
12. yumeyume
Meaning: ① “(Followed by a word expressing prohibition) Never, absolutely,” ② “(Followed by a negative word) Not even a little, completely.”
Written in kanji as “努努,” “努力努力,” or “夢夢.”
13. aji wo shimeru
Meaning: “To learn the merits of something after it has worked well once, and implicitly expect the same thing to happen again.”
Written in kanji as “味を占める.”
14. mamagoto
The meaning is “children’s play that imitates the household activities carried out by those around them.”
It is written as “飯事” in kanji.
It comes from “飯” (mama), meaning meal, not the English word “mama（母）.” While not commonly used now, in the past, people used to say “omanma no kuige” (losing income and being unable to eat).
It’s not limited to just meals; it’s an imitation of general household life centered around the dinner table. Children often “imitate” their parents’ speech, so there were times when private conversations between parents would come out of the child’s mouth during “飯事,” causing embarrassment.
15. ura
There are words like “ura kanashii” (sad underside), “ura sabishii” (lonely underside), and “ura sabireta” (ruined underside). This “ura” is written as “心” (heart) in kanji.
It shares the same etymology as “ura” (backside), meaning “something not visible on the surface.” As a noun, it means “heart, feelings, inner self,” but when attached to adjectives and verbs, it expresses the meaning of “in the heart, from the bottom of one’s heart,” and further weakens to mean “without any particular reason, without knowing why, one feels that way spontaneously.”
It is used in phrases like “heart sad,” “lonely,” and “desolate heart.”
“Urabureru” (to be depressed/downcast) also originates from “kokoro fureru” (to touch one’s heart), meaning “to be deeply moved or affected by something.”
Incidentally, the “ura” in “urawakai” (young and youthful) is said to mean either “the end, like a young and fresh treetop,” or “the heart, like one feels that way in their heart.”
16. hitotonari
The meaning is “one’s innate character.”
It is written as “為人” in kanji. It can also be written as “人となり.”