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小便小僧 [しょうべんこぞう] – a statue of a little boy peeing into a fountain
I shudder to consider the possibility of a 大便小僧.
齧る [かじる] – to chew, bite, gnaw, have a nibble
千秋楽 [せんしゅうらく] – concluding festivities; the final day of a sumo tournament
This word is a favorite of mine. I love how it sounds and love the poetic nature of the characters that comprise it.
ぬくもり – warmth
This warmth doesn’t just refer to heat, but also seems to have an emotional connotation. A warm glow, warm hearted, a warm feeling running through your heart. This is ぬくもり.
複数形 [ふくすうけい] – plural (grammatical term)
Most Westerners have heard of the kanji 数 (sorta), even if they aren’t aware of it. That’s because it’s one of the characters that make up the name of the popular number puzzle “Sudoku” – 数独 [すうどく]. While it’s written “Sudoku” in English, the “u” should actually be elongated slightly, as in “Sūdoku.” So, the next time you find yourself in Kinokuniya, asking for a book on “suhdookoo,” don’t be surprised if you’re met with curious stares.
天覧相撲 [てんらんずもう] – A Sumō tournament which the Emperor is attending
In this compound, 天 is an abbreviation for 天皇 [てんのう] “the Emperor.” 覧 is often used in the 敬語 [けいご] (honorific) phrase ご覧下さい or “please have a look.” But, I’m afraid we’ll need to tackle 敬語 some other time.
やばい – dangerous; risky.
The word やばい is also commonly heard in the slang used by youngins. Its meaning can run the gamut from “awful” to “cool” to “oh crap” to “uh-oh.” You will need to glean the exact meaning from context.
As Britney Spears might say (if she were Japanese), “やばい、またやっちゃった!“
雑談 [ざつだん] – chit chat; idle talk
These characters can also be found in the following commonly-used words:
爆睡 [ばくすい] – dead asleep; crashed hard
爆 is also used in the word 爆発 [ばくはつ] “explosion.”
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