40 Japanese Proverbs (Kotowaza) with Meanings and Romaji

Fall down seven times, get up eight — and 39 more Japanese proverbs that say a lot in very few words.

Japanese proverbs are called kotowaza (諺). Some are short sayings, some are idiomatic phrases, and some are compact four-character idioms. Each entry below gives the Japanese, the romaji, a literal translation, and what people actually mean when they say it. Where English has a close match, it is noted.

Perseverance and Patience

1. 七転び八起き (nana korobi ya oki) — “Fall down seven times, get up eight.” Keep getting back up, no matter how often you fail. It is often printed next to Daruma dolls, which are weighted to pop upright when tipped over.

2. 石の上にも三年 (ishi no ue ni mo san nen) — “Three years even on a stone.” Sit on a cold stone long enough and it warms up: patience and persistence pay off.

3. 継続は力なり (keizoku wa chikara nari) — “Continuing is power.” Steady, ongoing effort is a strength in itself.

4. 塵も積もれば山となる (chiri mo tsumoreba yama to naru) — “Even dust, piled up, becomes a mountain.” Small things add up. English: “Every little helps.”

5. 急がば回れ (isogaba maware) — “If you’re in a hurry, go the long way around.” The safe route is often the faster one. English: “More haste, less speed.”

6. 雨降って地固まる (ame futte ji katamaru) — “After the rain, the ground hardens.” A relationship can come out of a conflict stronger than before.

7. 案ずるより産むが易し (anzuru yori umu ga yasushi) — “Giving birth is easier than worrying about it.” Doing the thing is usually easier than dreading it.

8. 苦あれば楽あり (ku areba raku ari) — “Where there is hardship, there is ease.” Hard times are followed by good ones. English: “After rain comes fair weather.”

Mistakes and Humility

9. 猿も木から落ちる (saru mo ki kara ochiru) — “Even monkeys fall from trees.” Experts make mistakes too.

10. 弘法にも筆の誤り (kōbō ni mo fude no ayamari) — “Even Kōbō slips with his brush.” Kōbō Daishi (Kūkai) was a monk famous for his calligraphy. English: “Even Homer nods.”

11. 河童の川流れ (kappa no kawa nagare) — “Even a kappa gets swept down the river.” The kappa is a water creature from Japanese folklore — a strong swimmer who still loses to the current sometimes. Same meaning as the two above.

12. 井の中の蛙大海を知らず (i no naka no kawazu taikai o shirazu) — “A frog in a well knows nothing of the great ocean.” Someone with a narrow view of the world, unaware of how much they haven’t seen.

13. 能ある鷹は爪を隠す (nō aru taka wa tsume o kakusu) — “The capable hawk hides its talons.” Truly skilled people don’t show off.

14. 出る杭は打たれる (deru kui wa utareru) — “The stake that sticks out gets hammered down.” Standing out invites criticism. A common variant uses 釘 (kugi, nail) instead of 杭 (kui, stake).

15. 亀の甲より年の功 (kame no kō yori toshi no kō) — “Years of experience count for more than a tortoise’s shell.” The two kō sounds make it a pun; the point is that age brings wisdom.

Wisdom and Strategy

16. 二兎を追う者は一兎も得ず (nito o ou mono wa itto mo ezu) — “One who chases two rabbits catches neither.” Split your focus and you get nothing.

17. 一石二鳥 (isseki nichō) — “One stone, two birds.” Solving two problems with one action. Fun fact: this one is a calque of the English “kill two birds with one stone.”

18. 虎穴に入らずんば虎子を得ず (koketsu ni irazunba koji o ezu) — “If you don’t enter the tiger’s den, you can’t catch its cub.” English: “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

19. 石橋を叩いて渡る (ishibashi o tataite wataru) — “Tap a stone bridge before crossing it.” Be extremely careful, even when something looks safe.

20. 三人寄れば文殊の知恵 (sannin yoreba monju no chie) — “Three people together have the wisdom of Monju.” Monju (Manjushri) is the Buddhist bodhisattva of wisdom. English: “Two heads are better than one.”

21. 良薬は口に苦し (ryōyaku wa kuchi ni nigashi) — “Good medicine tastes bitter.” Useful advice is often hard to hear.

22. 一寸先は闇 (issun saki wa yami) — “One inch ahead is darkness.” No one knows what’s coming next.

23. 早起きは三文の徳 (hayaoki wa sanmon no toku) — “Getting up early gains you three mon.” A mon was an old low-value coin. English: “The early bird catches the worm.”

24. 郷に入っては郷に従え (gō ni itte wa gō ni shitagae) — “When you enter a village, follow its ways.” English: “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.”

25. 習うより慣れろ (narau yori narero) — “Get used to it rather than study it.” Practice beats theory — a good motto for anyone learning Japanese.

People and Relationships

26. 十人十色 (jūnin toiro) — “Ten people, ten colors.” Everyone has their own tastes and ideas.

27. 蛙の子は蛙 (kaeru no ko wa kaeru) — “A frog’s child is a frog.” Children take after their parents. English: “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

28. 情けは人の為ならず (nasake wa hito no tame narazu) — “Kindness is not just for others.” Kindness you show comes back to you. It is widely misread as “helping people does them no good”: in Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs survey for fiscal 2022, 46.2% chose the traditional meaning and 47.7% chose the mistaken one.

29. 笑う門には福来たる (warau kado ni wa fuku kitaru) — “Good fortune comes to the gate of those who laugh.” A cheerful home attracts happiness.

30. 目は口ほどに物を言う (me wa kuchi hodo ni mono o iu) — “The eyes speak as much as the mouth.” You can read feelings in someone’s eyes.

31. 住めば都 (sumeba miyako) — “Wherever you live becomes the capital.” Any place feels like home once you settle in.

32. 水に流す (mizu ni nagasu) — “Let it flow away with the water.” Forgive and forget.

33. 立つ鳥跡を濁さず (tatsu tori ato o nigosazu) — “A bird leaving the water doesn’t muddy it.” When you leave a job or a place, leave it clean and on good terms.

34. 一期一会 (ichigo ichie) — “One time, one meeting.” Treasure each encounter, because it will never happen exactly the same way again. The idea is closely tied to the Japanese tea ceremony.

Wasted Effort and Everyday Humor

35. 猫に小判 (neko ni koban) — “Gold coins to a cat.” Giving something valuable to someone who can’t appreciate it. English: “Pearls before swine.”

36. 馬の耳に念仏 (uma no mimi ni nenbutsu) — “A Buddhist prayer in a horse’s ear.” Advice that goes completely unheard.

37. 花より団子 (hana yori dango) — “Dumplings over flowers.” Preferring the practical (sweet rice dumplings) over the merely pretty (cherry blossoms) — often said of people at flower-viewing parties who are mostly there for the food.

38. 知らぬが仏 (shiranu ga hotoke) — “Not knowing is Buddha.” English: “Ignorance is bliss.”

39. 覆水盆に返らず (fukusui bon ni kaerazu) — “Spilled water doesn’t return to the tray.” What’s done can’t be undone. English: “No use crying over spilled milk.”

40. 鬼に金棒 (oni ni kanabō) — “An iron club for an ogre.” Giving something already strong an extra advantage.

Why These Proverbs Are Hard to Translate

Kotowaza lean on things a literal translation drops: kappa and oni from folklore, Buddhist figures like Monju, old coins like the mon, and puns like the double kō in proverb 15. Word-for-word, ishi no ue ni mo san nen is just “three years even on a stone”; the meaning only lands once you know the image behind it. If you run one through a translator such as OpenL, compare the result with the meanings above so the idea comes across, not just the words.

For more on the language itself, see our guide to Japanese. For proverbs from other cultures, try ancient proverbs from around the world.

Sources

• Japanese proverbs (Wikiquote) — Japanese text, romaji, and literal translations for several sayings, with book citations
• Category: Japanese proverbs (Wiktionary) — readings and meanings, including the English origin of 一石二鳥
• 令和4年度「国語に関する世論調査」の結果の概要 (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Japan) — survey figures on how people understand 情けは人のためならず
• Daruma doll (Wikipedia) — Daruma’s link to nana korobi ya oki
• Ichi-go ichi-e (Wikipedia) — meaning and tea ceremony connection