Boost your vocabulary with four-character idioms that include numbers! A collection of four-character idioms for elementary school students to learn.
How many four-character idioms that include numbers—like “killing two birds with one stone” (isshoku nichō) or “writhe in agony” (shichiten battō)—do you know? Four-character idioms are studied extensively even in elementary school and often appear on Japanese language tests and Kanji proficiency exams.
But are you understanding their meanings correctly? In this article, we introduce number-containing four-character idioms that are perfect for deepening knowledge and that we’d like elementary school children to learn.
Even if they seem difficult, many of them are expressions you can use in familiar situations, so you’ll surely be able to enjoy learning them!
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Boost Your Vocabulary with Four-Character Idioms That Include Numbers! A Collection of Four-Character Idioms for Elementary School Students to Learn (21–30)
The return of the sun; the turning of the tide toward good fortune (often used to mean a revival or a new beginning after adversity).
@hjc.aki Ichi-yō rai-fuku: Winter will surely end and spring will come; tough times will surely end and happiness will arrive.The return of the sun (symbolizing the turning of misfortune to good fortune)translationCalligrapherCalligraphyTranslation
♬ Soranji – Mrs. GREEN APPLE
Like the end of a cold winter and the gentle return of spring, the four-character idiom “Ichiyō Raifuku” means that good fortune comes after a spell of misfortune.
On days when you fail at studying or sports, or when something sad happens, you may worry that things will stay this way forever.
Even so, time moves forward little by little, and a new light begins to shine into your heart.
Even if school life doesn’t go smoothly, by continuing to move forward—even if only in small steps—the situation will surely change.
It is a four-character idiom that gives you the courage to keep hope in your heart.
A sudden resolve; making a firm decision (to start afresh).
Ichinen-hokki is a four-character idiom meaning to tackle something with firm resolve.
Making it a New Year’s resolution can be the push you need to boldly take on things you haven’t managed before or challenges you want to try.
For example, by keeping this phrase in mind for goals like studying a difficult subject or practicing a new skill, you’ll be more likely to persevere without giving up.
Facing what you’ve decided with renewed determination and full commitment leads to confidence and a sense of achievement.
It’s an encouraging phrase that helps turn resolve into action and fosters the drive to approach each day with enthusiasm.
A fresh start
You couldn’t study hard last year, you didn’t perform well in sports, and you kept getting into fights with your friends.
If that sounds like your child, write this four-character idiom and make a fresh start—reset your mindset! It’s a waste of time to keep regretting what you couldn’t do in the past.
If studying, sports, and relationships with friends didn’t go well, just work hard from the new year! As a declaration of your determination to do your best in the year ahead, try writing these characters.
Note that the characters “機” and “転” contain small components and require fine spacing, so be careful when doing your first calligraphy of the year.
with all one’s might
If your child has something they want to work hard at in the new year, how about writing this four-character idiom? Isshōkenmei expresses the idea of tackling things earnestly and with full effort.
It’s a phrase that can encourage children who want to devote themselves to something—whether it’s studying, sports, lessons, or anything they want to try harder at or achieve better results in.
The character “ken” (懸) is a bit tricky, so when writing it for the first calligraphy of the year, be careful not to let the finer details get smudged!
In conclusion
I hope that, through four-character idioms that include numbers, you as an elementary school student will deepen your knowledge even more. By learning the meanings each expression carries, you will also enrich the ways you express your thoughts. Please keep enjoying the world of words and continue piling up new discoveries!