Understanding Japanese Expressions: The Power of Idioms
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).
Exploring the Richness of Japanese Vocabulary: Words with Depth
| Character Illustration | four-character idiomatic compounds |
641 大壑拐然 642 稲麻竹葦  643 単樸浅近  644 屠毒筆墨  645 霑体塗足  646 貪吝刻薄  647 天府之国  648 陶潜帰去  649 倒置干戈  650 杜門却掃  651 長汀曲浦  652 追根究底  653 土階茅茨  654 特筆大書  655 同文同軌  656 袒裼裸裎  657 顛委勢峻  658 梯山航海  659 蹈節死義  660 致知格物  |
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661 天一地二 662 大人虎変  663 珍聞奇聞  664 竹頭木屑  665 追奔逐北  666 投珠報宝  667 大醇小疵  668 天壌無窮  669 桃園之契  670 治乱興廃  671 戴逵破琴  672 同風一俗  673 大公無私  674 東窺西望  675 朝真暮偽  676 中庸之道  677 呑牛之気  678 遅疑逡巡  679 天人相与  680 桃弧棘矢  |
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| Character Illustration | four-character idiomatic compounds |
681 長生不老 682 耽美主義  683 対岸火災  684 単刀直入  685 棣鄂之情  686 地覆天翻  687 戴盆望天  688 怒目横眉  689 大海撈針  690 転倒黒白  691 超然絶後  692 黜陟幽明  693 天歩艱難  694 談論風発  695 斗筲之子  696 重煕累績  697 大名鼎鼎  698 得意忘形  699 徳性滋養  700 天上皇帝  |
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701 道貌儼然 702 道貌岸然  703 知勇双全  704 追本究源  705 直言無諱  706 天人相関  707 嘲風詠月  708 怒髪指冠  709 天下無双  710 直木先伐  711 堂下周屋  712 剃髪落飾  713 長者三代  714 他山之石  715 滔滔汨汨  716 知謀縦横  717 長短之説  718 当面錯過  719 呑炭漆身  720 断髪文身  |
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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.