[Japanese Idioms by Flashcards]
泣き面に蜂
“The bee [stings] when you’re already crying.”
(When it rains, it pours; bad things come in threes.)
When someone has been hit simultaneously with several bad breaks, it may be consoling to hear a friend say, “Nakitsura ni hachi.” The philosophical surety of the phrase reminds Japanese that misfortune may indeed come in twos (or even threes).
Sample text:
(Style: spoken/casual/male)
A: Yukari wa kinoo sensei ni shikararete nakinagara kaette kuru tochuu, Masao-kun ni nagurareta rashii n da. Mattaku nakitsura ni hachi to wa kono koto da na.
A: ゆかりはきのう先生にしかられて泣きながら帰ってくる途中、
A: Yesterday, apparently, Yukari’s teacher scolded her, and then as she was crying on her way home, Masao beat her up. It’s really true: “When it rains, it pours.”
Japanese Idioms
