Same Kanji, Different Readings: The Fascinating Side of Japanese To everyone working hard to learn kanji! In Japanese, some words are written with the same kanji but have different readings and uses. Let's take 「墓穴」 as an example. When read as "boketsu" (ぼけつ)**, it is often used in the idiom 「墓穴を掘る」 (boketsu wo horu). This expression means "to dig one's own grave" — in other words, to get yourself into trouble through your own words or actions. On the other hand, when read as "haka ana" (はかあな), it literally refers to a hole dug for a grave. In fact, "boketsu" can also literally mean a grave hole, but let's focus on its idiomatic use here. Trying to memorize both readings and their different uses at the same time can sometimes be confusing, even though the kanji are exactly the same. Instead, try learning each reading and its usage separately, with an example sentence. Example 1 「余計なことを言って、自分で墓穴（ぼけつ）を掘ってしまった。」 "I said too much and ended up digging my own grave." Example 2 「墓穴（はかあな）を掘る作業が始まった。」 "The work of digging a grave has begun." Interestingly, English has a very similar idiom: "dig one's own grave." Both Japanese and English use the same image to describe how someone's own actions can lead to trouble. You can often figure out how to read a word and what it means by looking at the surrounding context. Learning individual kanji is important, but connecting words to situations and contexts is also a valuable way to improve your Japanese. The same kanji can create different impressions depending on how they are read and used. And sometimes, we discover that different languages share surprisingly similar expressions. I think these little discoveries are part of what makes learning a language so enjoyable!

join or join in I know “join” is for join a club or a party, and “join” in is for join in an activitiy. But I read a sentence from a book. it says “join a school tour”. I am confused. school tour is an activity, so I guess we should say “join in a school tour”. So am I right?

Hello! English tutor Alice here. Here's some information about me. I'd love to know more about you. I have lived in the US my entire life and I've never been overseas. What country do you live in? Have you ever been over seas? I have been to Canada but not since the mid 1990's. I have been to multiple states here in the US. Here's a few of them that I have visited. Michigan, Florida, Georgia, Indiana and California. Some may wonder... Alice... Why have you not traveled overseas before? Well the answer is simple. Actually I have a few answers for this. First of all... the United States is massive. Depending on where you live in a state, it could take anywhere from a few moments to a few hours to just get to the state next to yours. And traveling across country can for some Americans feel worlds different. Cost of traveling. The cost to travel overseas is quite expensive. And the flights last many hours, much longer than a domestic US flight. Many of those flights are what we call 'Red Eye' flights....where the flight is during our over night hours. Which maybe stressful to some. The fastest flight from my hometown airport in Kentucky to London's Heathrow airport is 7 hours and 40 minutes. The fastest flight from my hometown airport in Kentucky to Los Angeles LAX airport is around 5 hours. Some people, like myself do not like flying. I find it incredibly stressful. I have flown a few times before within the US but it's something I get a lot of anxiety about. Plus also factor in the cost of lodging and food when traveling. Cost of transportation when landing. I think for some international students the massive size of the US and the distance between major cities that one would visit is something that is hard to realize. Did you know...even with living in the US my entire life... I have never been to Seattle, Washington DC, New York City, Chicago, Dallas or New Orleans. That's just some major cities that I've never been to.

🧠 Everyday English Challenge!

Today was really tough. The school festival is just around the corner, so l've been super busy getting everything ready! Sending endless emails to the Student Affairs office, checking in on other teams' progress... There's still so much left to do, but somehow I'm hanging in there and managing. Honestly, I should be checking in on our general coordinator's mental wellbeing too, but I feel like I'm falling short, which is so frustrating. As the vice head, I want to lead everyone better, but when things don't go smoothly, it just leaves me feeling really down and conflicted. Next year l'll be taking over as head of the department. I want the retiring third-years to graduate knowing things are in good hands, and I want to become the kind of leader the first- and second-years genuinely want to follow. But I'm just so inefficient and clumsy at navigating life.. I really wish I could handle things a lot more smoothly.

Learning German grammar together! Which answer is correct? Questions will be answered below!

Vocab Challenge (B2) #day4

🌟 English Mini Lesson “Fingers crossed!” 🤞 Meaning: I hope things go well! 💬 Example: — I have an important exam tomorrow. — Good luck! Fingers crossed! 🍀 ✨ Your turn: What are you keeping your fingers crossed for? 😊👇

What’s your favourite here? And how many of these dishes have you tried? 🤔🤔🤔