Shūji for All Ages: Learning Calligraphy Together
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. |
|||
| |
|||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 Mincho Font |
Textbook Font |
Gyousho Font |
Gothic |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| 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).
Kanji for Calligraphy: Understanding Character Structure
| Character Illustration | four-character idiomatic compounds |
401 皮開肉破 402 無事息災  403 布韈青鞋  404 南箕北斗  405 煩悩外道  406 焚書坑儒  407 罵詈讒謗  408 白玉楼中  409 匪石之心  410 反間苦肉  411 奔南狩北  412 難中之難  413 南風之詩  414 比較検討  415 内柔外剛  416 負薪救火  417 蓬頭乱髪  418 非常之人  419 蒲鞭之罰  420 美須豪眉  |
|
421 納所坊主 422 抜本塞源  423 不繋之舟  424 暴虐無道  425 万物一斉  426 聞風喪胆  427 白駒過隙  428 分憂之寄  429 不老長寿  430 木牛流馬  431 抱柱之信  432 放歌高唱  433 飛絮流花  434 覇王之佐  435 悲歓合散  436 腹中之針  437 破釜沈船  438 暮楚朝秦  439 南山之寿  440 紛華奢靡  |
|
| Character Illustration | four-character idiomatic compounds |
441 不将不逆 442 悲歌悵飲  443 麋沸螘動  444 北轍南轅  445 八面六臂  446 無礼至極  447 吠影吠声  448 不買美田  449 不義富貴  450 風声鶴唳  451 佩韋佩弦  452 買牛売剣  453 比肩継踵  454 万緑一紅  455 博聞多識  456 望塵之拝  457 墨子兼愛  458 霹靂一声  459 女人禁制  460 百姓一揆  |
|
461 博学篤志 462 汨羅之鬼  463 伯仲之間  464 碧眼紅毛  465 富貴福禄  466 文章絶唱  467 豊頬曲眉  468 万物流転  469 放虎還山  470 浮瓜沈李  471 北窓三友  472 鳧趨雀躍  473 暴君汚吏  474 報仇雪恥  475 白水真人  476 皮裏春秋  477 燃犀之明  478 粉白黛墨  479 品行方正  480 風起雲湧  |
|
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.