Words March 2026 Week 2

The “wind chill factor” is called “taikan ondo”, or “feels-like temperature”, in Japanese. (Today was warm, but the wind made it feel cold.)

I have a seven-tier doll set. (The doll set has seven steps.)

Layered cakes are the same cake size stacked on top of one another. (Tiered cakes are different size cakes stacked on top of one another.)

She was sniffling all day because of hay fever. (She had the sniffles.)

The Gospel singers were very energetic and powerful. (Listening to gospel singers gives me energy.)

 Image (noun) is the picture itself, imagine (verb) is the action of creating that mental picture, and imagination (noun) is the ability to do so. (Some people say, “I imaged ____” but should have said, “I imagined ____.”)

Doing things efficiently achieves maximum productivity with minimum effort. (She thought that she was being efficient by leaving her clothes around her room instead of folding them and putting them in a drawer or hanging them in the closet.)

I bought a custom-made suit. (The suit was tailor-made. You can say “order-made” but that is not common.)

She likes the school because they have nice looking uniforms. (I guess uniforms are more important to her than education.)

We have a big age gap. (It was between a grandfather and granddaughter.)

It was a silent drive. (They didn’t talk much.)

A 19-year-old boy didn’t know how to make tea in a teapot. (The younger generation use tea bags or drink tea from plastic bottles.)

Standing Zen (Ritsuzen) in Japan involves maintaining a straight, upright posture. (My student used a different name for this, but I can’t remember it.)

It helps make our immune system stronger. (With a strong immune system, we have a smaller chance of getting sick.)

It doesn’t need any exercise equipment. (The Japanese word “doogu” can be translated as tool, equipment, instrument, machine, mechanism, implement, etc. For exercise and sports, “equipment” is best.)

He thought that he forgot his phone at the golf course. (The phone was finally found in his bag in the car.)

He made a fuss while looking for his phone. (He was noisy and complaining about where it might be.)

Hachioji Kuruma Ningyo is a Japanese puppet theater company that has been in the family of the founder of the kuruma ningyo style of puppetry since the 19th century. (In this case, you can see the face of the puppeteer.)

Some of my coworkers are grumpy old men who are always grumbling about their job. (A "grumpy old man" is a stereotype of an older male who is consistently irritable, cynical, easily annoyed, and prone to complaining.)