happō fusagari lit. ‘blocked in all eight directions’
Japanese idiom, everyday. To be in trouble or a difficult situation.
Draft Not yet checked by a native Japanese speaker.
How do people use 八方塞がり
?
Everyday, used when every way out is blocked and nothing you try works: “八方塞がりだ” (we’re stuck whichever way we turn). It’s a noun, so it takes だ, の (“八方塞がりの状態”) or になる. It’s stronger than just having a problem: it means you’ve run out of options.
Also said 八方ふさがり
八方塞がり
in real sentences
-
八方塞がりだ。
Happō fusagari da.
We’re up against the wall.
Tatoeba, sentence by mookeee, translation by CK, CC BY 2.0 FR
Where does 八方塞がり
come from?
The Daijisen (via Kotobank) gives the first meaning as a term from onmyōdō, Japanese yin-yang divination: a time when every one of the eight directions is unlucky, so any undertaking is bound to go wrong. The everyday sense of having no workable move grew from that. No date for the first use is recorded.
Mistakes learners make with 八方塞がり
Reading 八方 as はちほう. It’s はっぽう, as in 八方美人 (someone who tries to please everyone).
Other Japanese idioms like 八方塞がり
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?
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