The Significance of Shūji in Japanese Education and Culture
Multiple examples of four-character compounds and four-letter words are presented on one page with examples of four-character compounds displayed by various designs focusing on four-character compounds and four-letter words.
We express four-character idioms in various designs, such as Mincho, Gyosho, Gothic, and Sosho styles. These can serve as general examples for lettering in Japanese, posters (handmade signs), and calligraphy assignments like the New Year's calligraphy tradition.
 Comparison Samples of Four-Character Idiom Designs. |
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 Mincho Font |
Textbook Font |
Gyousho Font |
Gothic |
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| Maru Gothic |
Anxiety |
Brush Pen |
Sosho Font |
We have put together a one-page sample of such a design for one four-character phrase.
Kanji characters may be missing if they are old or special characters (Unicode).
The Beauty of Kanji: Aesthetic Principles in Japanese Characters
| Character Illustration | four-character idiomatic compounds |
1441 我武者羅 1442 我聞如是  1443 過猶不及  1444 烏之雌雄  1445 我利我利  1446 花柳狭斜  1447 河梁携手  1448 下陵上替  1449 河梁之吟  1450 河梁之誼  1451 河梁之別  1452 迦陵頻伽  1453 倹存奢失  1454 厳談酷促  1455 乾端坤倪  1456 懸頭刺股  1457 懸頭錐股  1458 玄冬素雪  1459 犬兔之争  1460 堅忍果決  |
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1461 堅忍持久 1462 堅忍質直  1463 喜笑顔開  1464 疑城胎宮  1465 起承転結  1466 起承転合  1467 嬉笑怒罵  1468 机上空論  1469 机上之論  1470 喜色満面  1471 姦人之雄  1472 甘井先竭  1473 歓声雷動  1474 姦声乱色  1475 干戚羽旄  1476 頑石点頭  1477 乾舌焦唇  1478 煥然一新  1479 冠前絶後  1480 勧善懲悪  |
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| Character Illustration | four-character idiomatic compounds |
1481 甘泉必竭 1482 渙然氷釈  1483 完全無欠  1484 官尊民卑  1485 邯鄲学歩  1486 寒暖饑飽  1487 肝胆胡越  1488 肝胆楚越  1489 邯鄲之歩  1490 邯鄲之枕  1491 邯鄲之夢  1492 肝胆朋友  1493 簡単明瞭  1494 疑心暗鬼  1495 喜新厭旧  1496 喜新厭故  1497 貴人健忘  1498 貴紳淑女  1499 貴人多忘  1500 杞人天憂  |
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1501 帰真反璞 1502 棄信忘義  1503 杞人憂天  1504 気随気侭  1505 規制緩和  1506 規制強化  1507 欺世盗名  1508 帰正反本  1509 毀瘠骨立  1510 奇絶怪絶  1511 堅忍不抜  1512 犬吠驢鳴  1513 堅白異同  1514 堅白同異  1515 剣抜弩張  1516 犬馬之心  1517 犬馬之年  1518 犬馬之報  1519 犬馬之養  1520 犬馬之労  |
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Significance of Font Design
They play an important role in the communication and visual presentation of information. First, fonts can greatly affect the impression of a message depending on the shape and style of the letters. For example, serif fonts give a traditional, formal impression, while sans-serif fonts create a modern, clean look.
They also contribute to readability and legibility and are designed to aid visual attraction and understanding, especially in advertising and publications. In addition, fonts can serve as part of a brand identity, a means of expressing the personality of a company or product.
About precautions How to write and read four-character phrases |
This homepage introduces how to write various four-character phrases.
Some kanji characters may be garbled because they are not supported in the font-based character design. We have also taken care to ensure that there are no mistakes in the kanji and reading notations, but there may be kanji mistakes or conversion errors.
The introduction of typefaces is only shown as an example as a sample of typeface design. Even similar fonts may differ in minor details. It is not intended to indicate superiority or inferiority of any typeface.
The font and cursive typefaces shown on this page are not necessarily correct, as they often reflect the individuality of the person actually writing them.
When accuracy is required for school assignments, exams, work, etc., please confirm the correctness of the kanji, readings, and meanings of 4-kanji compounds with a Japanese dictionary, idiomatic expression dictionary, or other reliable source. Text and images on this site may not be reproduced or redistributed.