[Japanese Idioms by Flashcards]
穴があったら入りたい
“If there were a hole, I’d want to crawl into it.”
(“I’m so ashamed”; “I could’ve died of embarrassment.”)
Sometimes your embarrassment is so acute you want to disappear completely from the scene. Unfortunately, in most cases you’re stuck with braving it out. Yet were there a hole, you’d crawl into it.
Sample text:
(Style: written/informal)
Paatii no sekijoo de kyuuni aisatsu o tanomare, taihen komatta koto ga aru. Ki ga dooten shiteita tame ka, jooshi no namae o machigaete itteshimai, hontooni ana ga attara hairitai kimochi datta. Yahari aisatsu o tanomu nara maemotte onegai shite moraereba arigatai mono da.
パーティーの席上で急にあいさつをたのまれ、大変困ったことがある。気が動転していたためか、上司の名前をまちがえて言ってしまい、本当に穴があったら入りたい気持ちだった。やはり、あいさつをたのむなら前もってお願いしてもらえればありがたいものだ。
I was once in big trouble when asked without warning to give a speech at a party. I must have been upset; I used the wrong name in reference to my boss. I want to crawl into a hole! It is preferable to ask beforehand if you want someone to give a speech.
Japanese Idioms
