猫の額

Japanese
Kanji in this term
猫 額
ねこ
Grade: S		 ひたい
Grade: 5

Etymology

Compound of 猫 (neko, “cat”) +‎ の (no, “possessive particle”) +‎ 額 (hitai, “forehead”).

Pronunciation
  • (Tokyo) ね​このひたい [néꜜkò nò hìtàì] (Atamadaka – [1])[1]
  • IPA(key): [ne̞ko̞ no̞ çita̠i]

Noun

猫(ねこ)の額(ひたい) • (neko no hitai) ←ねこのひたひ (nekonofitafi)?

  1. (idiomatic) tiny, not enough room to swing a cat; literally, “a cat’s forehead”
    猫(ねこ)の額(ひたい)ほどの庭(にわ)
    neko no hitai hodo no niwa
    a garden as tiny as a cat’s forehead

Usage notes

Primarily used of areas, notably a room, an apartment, a garden, or a plot of land.

References
  1. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.