Words of Japanese origin: 10 questions

Give the word of Japanese origin (which is listed in the OECD)

1. Lit. Picture letter, meaning a small picture used in an email or text message
2. Lit. Big wind, another word for a hurricane or cyclone
3. Lit. Human powered vehicle, meaning a cart pulled by a man and carrying passengers
4. Lit. Person of the arts, a lady who performed artistic endeavours for paying customers
5. Lit. Mugwort, a plant or cotton wool burned on the skin for therapeutic purposes
6. The name of a plant, an invasive weed in the US and UK, native to Japan and China
7. Lit. Divine wind, meaning a suicide attacker in World War II
8. Lit. Fermented paste oil, meaning a common seasoning or sauce in oriental cuisine
9. Lit. fermented beans, meaning a common food made from soybeansTofu
10. Lit. Chief of a group, meaning the top person in an organization (often preceded by the word “head”).

Answers below (scroll down)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Lit. Picture letter, meaning a small picture used in an email or text message
   A: Emoji
2. Lit. Big wind, another word for a hurricane or cyclone
   A: Typhoon (from taifu)
3. Lit. Human powered vehicle, meaning a cart pulled by a man and carrying passengers
   A: Rickshaw (from jinrikisha)
4. Lit. Person of the arts, a lady who performed artistic endeavours for paying customers
   A: Geisha
5. Lit. Mugwort, a plant or cotton wool burned on the skin for therapeutic purposes
   A: Moxa (from mogusa)
6. The name of a plant, an invasive weed in the US and UK, native to Japan and China
   A: Kudzu/Kuzu
7. Lit. Divine wind, meaning a suicide attacker in World War II
   A: Kamikaze
8. Lit. Fermented paste oil, meaning a common seasoning or sauce in oriental cuisine
   A: Soy (from shoyu)
9. Lit. fermented beans, meaning a common food made from soybeans
   A: Tofu
10. Lit. Chief of a group, meaning the top person in an organization (often preceded by the word “head”).
    A: Honcho (from hancho)

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