猫の額

Japanese

Kanji in this term
猫 額
ねこ
Grade: S		 ひたい
Grade: 5

Etymology

Compound of 猫 (neko, “cat”) +‎ の (no, “possessive particle”) +‎ 額 (hitai, “forehead”).

Pronunciation

  • (Tokyo) ね​このひたい [néꜜkò nò hìtàì] (Atamadaka – [1])[1]
  • IPA(key): [ne̞ko̞ no̞ çita̠i]

Noun

猫の額 (hiragana ねこのひたい, rōmaji neko no hitai, historical hiragana ねこのひたひ)

  1. (idiomatic) tiny, not enough room to swing a cat; literally, “a cat’s forehead”
    猫 (ねこ)の額 (ひたい)ほどの庭 (にわ)
    neko no hitai hodo no niwa
    a garden as tiny as a cat’s forehead

Usage notes

Primarily used of areas, notably a room, an apartment, a garden, or a plot of land.

References

  1. ↑ 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
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