Japanese Proverbs About Warnings & Caution

Failing to obtain anything by being greedy and trying to grab two things at once.

Taking a significant risk or using dangerous methods to achieve a goal.

Doing something dangerous is equivalent to being injured, even if you avoid harm this time.

To waste time by chatting or slacking off instead of working or finishing a task.

To seize on someone's minor slip of the tongue or mistake to criticize or tease them.

To rest on one's laurels or status and stop making an effort.

The autumn sun sets extremely quickly, as if a bucket were falling straight down into a well.

Hurling a variety of insults and verbal abuse at someone without restraint.

If you do bad things, you will eventually face negative consequences.

Bad deeds and negative rumors spread quickly to the world.

Bad deeds and negative reputations spread rapidly over great distances.

Money obtained without effort or through dishonest means is quickly lost because it is spent carelessly.

Just as a net cannot trap the wind, money can flow away without staying, or chasing small details can be futile.

Laws or regulations that are too loose allow major criminals to escape justice.

A bad situation continues with no signs of improvement and an ominous atmosphere.

To suffer the secondary damage or negative aftermath of an event or someone else's actions.

An unnaturally calm state that precedes a major event or upheaval.

A tiny flaw or a moment of carelessness can lead to a massive disaster or failure.

Extremely strict security or surveillance where not a single gap remains.

A tiny oversight or flaw can eventually lead to a major disaster.

A weather proverb stating that seeing a rainbow in the morning is a sign that heavy rain will follow later that day.

Treat even minor or easy tasks with the same level of caution and attention as difficult ones.

To take advantage of another person's weakness or difficult situation.

To be tripped up or taken advantage of by unfair means when one is off guard.

Taking precautions and preparing for danger in advance.

To exceed a budget or planned expenditure, resulting in a deficit.

The misfortune that strikes someone else today could happen to you tomorrow.

A certain small profit today is better than an uncertain large profit tomorrow.

Do not procrastinate, as unexpected events may rob you of the opportunity to act tomorrow.

Handle your own problems before trying to fix or criticize others.

Attend to your own affairs before interfering in the business of others.

Hiding only a part of one's faults or misdeeds while thinking everything is concealed.

Accidentally letting out a single word that leads to a secret being completely revealed.

Fortune-telling is a matter of chance, being sometimes right and sometimes wrong.

An expression describing an irresponsible attitude where one only cares about the immediate situation and ignores the consequences that follow.

It refers to something that is useless because the appropriate time has already passed.

Betraying a benefactor and causing them further trouble or dishonor upon one's departure.

To become excessively cautious after a single failure or bad experience.

To be in an extremely unstable and dangerous situation that could collapse at any moment.

To ignore opinions or criticism and let them pass without any effect.

A sharp rebuke used to tell someone that there is a limit to their foolish or irresponsible talk.

To reveal one's hidden true nature or actual level of skill due to a slip-up.

A state where all measures have failed and it is too late to take further action.

There is no cure for foolishness or stupidity.

While mocking a foolish person might be overlooked, one must never mock those who are in poverty.

A metaphor for temptations or vices that destroy a person's inherent good nature or natural talents.

Flowery language that sounds pleasant but lacks substance or sincerity.

To keep a promise even at the cost of one's life, or to be stubbornly and foolishly honest to the point of inflexibility.