country in civil war; country disarrayed by war; Warring States period (Japan, China); competiton in which there are several evenly-matched participants; hotly-contested game (match, market, etc.)
Muromachi shogunate (1336-1573)
indicates possessive; nominalizes verbs and adjectives; substitutes for "ga" in subordinate phrases; (at sentence-end, falling tone) indicates a confident conclusion; (at sentence-end) indicates emotional emphasis; (at sentence-end, rising tone) indicates question
decline; degeneration; decay; waning; ebbing
together with; as X, then Y (e.g. as we age we gain wisdom, as wine matures it becomes more valuable, etc.)
daimyo (Japanese feudal lord)
pluralizing suffix (esp. for people and animals; formerly honorific)
indicates sentence subject (occasionally object); indicates possessive (esp. in literary expressions); but; however; regardless of; whether (or not)
dominion; territory; possession
indicates direct object of action; indicates subject of causative expression; indicates an area traversed; indicates time (period) over which action takes place; indicates point of departure or separation of action; indicates object of desire, like, hate, etc.
to spread; to extend; to unfold; to open; to scatter about; to spread around
or; either ... or; maybe; perhaps; some ... and others ...; sometimes ... and at other times ...
the whole world; the whole country; society; the public; supremacy over a nation; government of a country; having one's own way
to hold (in one's hand); to take (into one's hand); to own; to obtain
good; advantage; sake; purpose; consequence; result
at (place, time); in; to (direction, state); toward; for (purpose); because of (reason); for
to engage in a bloody feud; to have a family quarrel; to quarrel with one's own flesh and blood; (lit.) to wash blood for blood
battle; fight; war; struggle; conflict
to throw oneself (into an activity)
period; epoch; the times; those days; oldness; ancientness
this; this one; this person; now; this point (in time); here; used to stress the subject of a sentence
indicates sentence topic; indicates contrast with another option (stated or unstated); adds emphasis
such; that sort of; that kind of; no way!; never!
world; society; life; lifetime; age; era; reign
splendid; magnificent; utter (esp. defeat); total; (arch.) something worth seeing; (arch.) sight
to live through; to survive
behind; rear; after; later; remainder; the rest; more (e.g. five more minutes)
Edo shogunate (1603-1867)
birth; creation; formation
also; too; not ... either; (it's not possible) no matter what; although one might wish otherwise
to hold (in one's hand); to take; to possess; to have; to maintain; to keep; to last
to have been decided (so) that; to have been arranged (so) that; to be the result (of); to be the outcome; to be the reason (for)
one person; being alone; being by oneself; being single; being unmarried; by oneself
woman; female; feminine gender
troubled times; turbulent times
flower; blossom; cherry blossom; beauty; blooming (esp. of cherry blossoms); ikebana; hanafuda
distinctly (standing out); clearly; in sharp relief; boldly
if; when; and; with; used for quoting (thoughts, speech, etc.); promoted pawn; indicates a question
to bloom; to flower; to blossom; to open
(arch.) large river (esp. the Yangtze); Lake Biwa
called; named; as many as; as much as; all ...; every single ...
name; given name; title; fame; renown; pretext
story; tale; narrative; account; fable; legend
theme; topic; subject matter; motif; project; slogan
insect; bug; worm; roundworm; one's emotions; one's feelings; nervousness