secretary; councillor; councilor
congratulatory visit to the Imperial Palace (e.g. at New Year)
7 or 3 ratio; hair parted on one side
triangle; triangular shape
three kinds; three varieties
three large cities (esp. Edo, Kyoto, and Osaka during the Edo period)
three branches of Buddhist sutras
three times (as much); treble; triple; threefold
combined vaccination for diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough) and tetanus
full signal strength (on a cellphone); good cellphone reception; (lit.) three bars
third grade; third class; tertiary
three kongs; winning hand containing three kongs
pansy (Viola tricolor var. hortensis); garden pansy; wild pansy (Viola tricolor); heartsease
thirteen; 13; king (playing card)
the three character styles: square and semicursive and grass
third stage; three stages
three generations; three periods; third generation
three persons; three parties
first three days of the New Year (January 1-3)
participation in government; state councillor (in the ritsuryo system); state councilor; vice-minister (early Meiji period); Cabinet Councillor (1937-1943); Cabinet Councilor
absence; nonattendance; nonappearance
the three powers of government (legislative, executive and judicial)
being thrice divorced; three-time divorcee; three x marks (i.e. three names struck from the family register)
participation; joining; entry; adherence
3 o'clock; afternoon snack (eaten around 3 o'clock); three ages of Buddhism (following the death of Gautama Buddha; age of the true law, age of the copied law, and age of the degeneration of the law); three ages of the dharma
three flat objects (sheets of paper, pieces of cloth, etc.); cutting a fish into two boneless fillets and a piece with the skeleton
participation in a war; going to war; taking part in a competition or contest
bringing; taking; carrying
set of three; three sets; three classes
three dimensions; three dimensional; 3D; real world; IRL (in real life)
twenty-third day of the month; twenty-three days
road approaching a shrine
three generations; third generation immigrant; sansei; the third (e.g. Henry III)
third rank (in the Japanese court system); Trinity; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit
adoration which is performed three times or repeatedly; act of worship which is performed three times or repeatedly
triple; treble; threefold; three-ply; triplicate
attendance; participation; presence
again and again; repeatedly
thirty-first day of the month; thirty-one days
one four-of-a-kind and one three-of-a-kind in a dealt hand; three and a four (in dice games)
three colours; three colors; triple run; winning hand containing the same chow in each of the three suits; triple pung; winning hand containing the same pung in each of the three suits
third year of junior high school; third-year junior high school student
third; tertiary; cubic (function, equation, etc.); third-order
three noble families (Kan'in, Kazan'in, and Nakanoin or Koga); three branch Tokugawa families (Owari, Kii, and Mito)
petty underling; small fry
in groups of twos and threes; in small groups
paltry amount of money; cheapness; worthlessness; three one-mon coins
three-digit number; hundreds column
three parts; three copies
immediate follower (of the shogun)
great army; mighty host; whole army
large triple gate to temple
to divide into three (parts); to trisect
three sides; three faces; page three (of a newspaper)
third year of high school; third-year high-school student
festival (shrine visit) by children aged 7, 5 and 3; lucky numbers 7, 5 and 3
oldest member of a group; longest-serving member
San'etsu (the three former provinces of Echizen, Etchū and Echigo)
three-day weekend; long weekend; three holidays in a row
taking part (in planning); participation
being highly educated, having a high salary and being tall; (lit.) three highs; high-valued yen, high stock prices and high land prices (usu. in reference to the Bubble Era)
change again and again; seesaw back and forth; being in a state of flux; backtracking repeatedly
third time lucky; third time's the charm
the three princesses; three kabuki roles regarded as some of the hardest to perform
third year (college) student; junior
third year of elementary school; third year elementary school student
House of Councillors (upper house of the National Diet of Japan)
trio; triumvirate; three famous retainers
second anniversary of a death
three highest ranks (wrestling, unions, etc.); three parts; three divisions
out on a third-base liner
outermost region of the castle
three lords (highest ranking officials in the old Imperial Chinese or Japanese governments)
in earnest; single-minded; with intense concentration; one and only; unique
each of the three being different from the other two; each of the three having his (her) own way
participation in government
retirement (to a temple of shrine) for prayer
shamisen; samisen; sanxian (Chinese lute); three string instruments (in gagaku; biwa, wagon and sou); three-stringed instrument
kitchen maid; kitchen duties; cooking
three primary colors (colours); trichromatic
wielding three swords; player who can play as pitcher, fielder and batter
23rd night of a lunar month (esp. 8th month); moon-waiting party held on 23rd night of a lunar month
the three powers: heaven, earth and man
Zen meditation; meditative consultation with the head abbot
three enlightened men (Buddha, Confucius and Christ; Lao-tzu, Confucius and Buddha; etc.); three sages; three virtuous men; the three most accomplished people (of a particular craft or trade)
three-second rule (food hygiene myth); three seconds rule (basketball)
visiting a temple for another
three-cornered hat; tricorne
triple handicap (esp. blindness, deafness and mutism)
three mountains; three shrines (of Kumano); three kingdoms (of 14th and 15th-century Okinawa)
Sanriku (the three former provinces of Rikuzen, Rikuchū and Rikuō)
after-afterparty; third party of the night
three boxes; three box-shaped things; three containers
Estates General; States-General
Thirty Years' War (1618-1648)
attendance (at a meeting)
the three people one must esteem: master, father, teacher
three great people (e.g. of the Meiji Restoration)
the three worms (in Taoism); worms that inhabit the human gut and, on the eve of the 57th day of the sexagenary cycle, ascend to heaven during one's sleep to report on one's wrongdoings
dotted line (printing); ellipsis (mark)
the three deities (Marici, Mahakala, Sarasvati); the three celestials (Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma)
third watch of the night (approx. 11pm to 1am)
shamisen; samisen; three-stringed Japanese lute
the three kleshas that poison the heart of man (desire, ill will and ignorance)
three secondary Tokugawa branch families (Tayasu, Shimizu, and Hitotsubashi)
Triad (secret Chinese society usually associated with organized crime)
three-line classified advertisement
21st day after death; 21st day after birth
threefold training; three divisions of the noble eightfold path
Shinto, Buddhism and Confucianism; (lit.) the three religions; Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism; Buddhism, Shinto and Christianity
deep admiration; repeatedly lamenting
fifty-three stations on the Tōkaidō (Edo-Kyoto highway in Edo-period Japan)
the world of hungry spirits and the world of animals; three evil worlds hell
adenosine triphosphate; ATP
three types of relatives (e.g. father, children and grandchildren; parents, siblings, wife and children; etc.)
Unit 731 (biological warfare unit of the Japanese Imperial Army)
Unit 731 (biological warfare unit of the Japanese Imperial Army)
comparison and choosing the good; consultation; referring to
Japan's three antinuclear principles (against producing, possessing and allowing the entry of nuclear weapons into Japanese territory)
15th day of the 1st, 7th and 10th lunar months; heaven, earth and man; January 1; New Year's Day; ternary
the three most important cities (esp. in ref. to Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya)
three primary virtues: valour, wisdom and benevolence (valor)
(Sun Yat-sen's) Three Principles of the People
(Sun Yat-sen's) Three Principles of the People
the three entertainment district enterprises: eating houses, geisha houses, meeting places for assignations, etc.
breaking into cold sweat when one is very embarrassed or scared
three Cs; three conditions that facilitate the transmission of infectious diseases (closed spaces, crowds, and close contact); three mysteries (Buddha's body, speech and mind)
recruit (former rank in the JSDF)
Sanron sect (of Buddhism)
House of Representatives and House of Councillors; both houses of the Diet
each of the three being different from the other two; each of the three having his (her) own way
the three phases of matter: solid, liquid and gas
win worth 24000 points (or, if dealer, 36000 points)
second anniversary of a death
visiting a home or a shrine
the wrongdoer never lacks a pretext; even thieves have their reasons
three famous beauty spots
32nd anniversary of death
arrival; payment on sight
three special awards for wrestlers at the end of a tournament
House of Councillors (upper house of the National Diet of Japan)
study reference; study-aid book
third string (of a shamisen, etc.)
thirty-three temples sacred to Kannon (Avalokitesvara)
thirty-three temples sacred to Kannon (Avalokitesvara)
national of a third country; foreigner resident in Japan (esp. Chinese and Korean)
the "three noes principle" of no drive, no interest, and no sense of responsibility; principle of indolence, indifference, and irresponsibility
the "three noes principle" of no drive, no interest, and no sense of responsibility; principle of indolence, indifference, and irresponsibility
land-tax rate during the Edo period, in which the government took 70 percent of the year's crop and the farmers kept 30 percent
third person singular present
32nd note; demisemiquaver
the world of hungry spirits and the world of animals; three evil worlds hell
three activities (action, speech and thought)
private interview with a Zen Master
Three Principles on arms exports
three-act structure (in screenwriting: setup, confrontation, resolution)
three shop system; system employed by pachinko parlours of using separate shops to exchange prizes for cash as a way of circumventing gambling laws
day laborer (in construction, etc.); day labourer
three great oceans (Pacific, Atlantic and Indian)
fine high-grade Japanese refined sugar
Japan's Three Famous Mountains (Mt. Fuji, Mt. Tate and Mt. Haku)
three causes of Buddha nature
règle des trois unités; the three unities (time, place and action)
traditional method of stirring soba while cooking
koto, alcohol and poetry; (lit.) the three loves; the three desires of the realms of existence
yellow stem borer (species of moth, Scirpophaga incertulas)
thirteen orphans; winning hand containing one of each terminal and honor tile
six-three system of education (six years of elementary school, followed by three years of junior high school)
guanosine triphosphate; GTP
ternary operator; conditional operator
repeated reading; close (careful) reading; careful perusal
a glib tongue (with fair words); fluent talk designed to deceive; talk something away
winter, night, and rainy weather; the ideal conditions for reading
the "thirty-percent autonomy" of local governments
cesium 137 (Cs-137); caesium 137
notoginseng (Panax pseudoginseng)
Grand Empress Dowager, the Empress Dowager and the Empress Consort
Third Epistle of John (book of the Bible)
Sanmonto sect (of Shin Buddhism)
three methods of Chinese divination (Lian Shan of the Xia period, Gui Cang of the Yin period and Zhou Yi of the Zhou period)
the three creator gods (Amanominakanushi no Kami, Takamimusuhi no Kami and Kamimusuhi no Kami)
the three creator gods (Amanominakanushi no Kami, Takamimusuhi no Kami and Kamimusuhi no Kami)
three bonds (in Confucianism: master and servant, father and son, husband and wife)
three ministries (under the ritsuryo system: Ministries of Civil Services, Health and War); three departments (in Tang-dynasty China: Secretariat, Chancellory and Dept. of State Affairs)
act of joining a crowd or assembly of people; attendance
36 Initials (system for transcribing initial consonants of Middle Chinese)
hourglass drum used in Nara-period court music
the three sacred mountains: Fuji, Atsuta, and Kumano
member of the House of Councillors
highest ranking prostitute in Yoshiwara (from the Houreki era onward)
Japan's Three Holy Mountains (Mt. Fuji, Mt. Tate and Mt. Haku)
furthest pine tree from a noh stage (of the three placed in front of the bridge walkway)
Triconodonta; Eutriconodonta; order of early mammals
three public corporations (Japan National Railways, Japan Monopoly Corporation, and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone) and five government enterprises (postal services, mintage, printing, management of state-owned forests/fields, and monopolization of alcohol)
three mental disturbances
three main Kumano Shrines (Kumano Hongu Taisha, Kumano Nachi Taisha, Kumano Hayatama Taisha)
kami of the three main Kumano shrines
baby colic (in infants around 3 months old)
(child in the) terrifying threes
even small mistakes can be costly
good things do not last long
three wholesome roots (no coveting, no anger, no delusion)
the three guardian deities in time of war (Marici, Mahakala and Vaisravana)
firstly vision, secondly footwork, thirdly courage, fourthly technique (the most important aspects of kendo)
Three Noes (former Taiwan policy of no contact, no negotiation and no compromise with China)
three days' march (approx. 36.5 km)
three kinds of beneficial friends: straightforward, sincere, and well-informed ones
three kinds of harmful friends: hypocritical, sycophantic, and glib-talking ones