今日、取り上げる四字熟語は、「意気投合」です。辞書には、「お互いに、深く気持ちが通じ合い、一体感を感じること、或いは、お互いの気持ちや考えなどが、ぴったりと合致して心を許し合うこと」と記されています。例えば、「今日、チェイさんとお会いして、色々、話しているうちに、意気投合しました」と言うように使います。

In Japan, there’s a concept called ikitougou. It refers to situations when two people are able to share the same feelings or thoughts. It would not typically be used in reference to close family members, because the assumption is that shared feelings and thoughts are typical in such relationships. On the other hand, one could probably use the word in any situation when the phrase “hit it off” would be appropriate in English.

Although the contexts in which “hit it off” and “ikitougou” can be used are the same, the feeling and meaning behind them is completely different. The English phrase implies that two people enjoyed being in each other’s presence, while the Japanese word implies that two people have been able to truly understand each other. Their level of amusement is irrelevant; in fact, although it would sound a little strange, “ikitougou” could actually be used when one person sympathizes with another.

This superficial similarity belying a fundamental difference is a phenomenon found quite often between Japanese and American cultures, in my view.





Flash back Card 1