germination; sprouting; budding
to whisper; to murmur; to rumor; to rumour
considerably; greatly; a lot
substitute; replacement; stand-in; proxy; compensation; exchange
to read; to recite (e.g. a sutra); to chant; to predict; to guess; to decipher; to count
fault; error; going poorly; being disadvantageous; un-; non-
child (esp. a boy); viscount; founder of a school of thought (esp. Confucius); master; masters and philosophers (categorization of Chinese classical literature); (arch.) you; -er (i.e. man who spends all his time doing...)
difficult; hard; impossible; unfeasible; fussy; particular; gloomy
Chinese book; Chinese classics
to glare at; to scowl at; to stare intensely at; to examine carefully; to estimate; to guess
and yet; though; when; in spite of
book; document; calligraphy (esp. Chinese); penmanship; handwriting; letter
strange; odd; unexpected; change; incident; disturbance
typeface; style of handwriting; calligraphic style
character (esp. kanji); letter; handwriting; penmanship; the ... word (e.g. "the L word" = "love")
to write; to compose; to pen; to draw; to paint
(not) altogether; (not) wholly
kindness; favor; favour; goodwill; affection; liking (for someone)
to get angry; to take offense; to take offence; to be furious
far from; anything but; not at all; let alone; to say nothing of; not to mention
China (sometimes also used in ref. to Korea or other foreign countries)
fourth day of the month; four days
slope; incline; hill; milestone; (age) mark
to discuss; to talk about; to argue; to dispute; to take into consideration; to make an issue of
to tremble violently; to shudder up; to shake
explanation; interpretation
... is the reason; ... is my excuse
nonsense; irresponsible remark; codswallop; random; haphazard; unsystematic
to also be (implies that as well as the earlier stated this is also the case); to be ... or something
very; awfully; exceedingly; (not) at all; by no means; simply (cannot)
to think of; to come up with
interesting; fascinating; amusing; funny; enjoyable; fun
to read (a kanji) with its native Japanese reading
to descend; to go down; to be handed down (of an order, judgment, etc.); to pass (of time); to surrender; to capitulate; to be less than
it seems; I think; I guess; right?; don't you agree?
predecessor; pioneer; ancestor
study; scholarship; learning; discipline; branch of learning; (a) science
faithful; devoted; loyal; honest; true
self-satisfaction; self-complacency; understanding (on one's own); realizing (through one's own ability); being paid back for one's deeds
Cao Cao (155-220), famous statesman and general at the end of Han, noted poet and calligrapher, later warlord, founder and first king of Cao Wei, father of Emperor Cao Pi; the main villain of novel the Romance of Three Kingdoms
troubled times; turbulent times
once; one time; temporarily; for a moment; one degree; one tone