Mottainai (nonfiction): Difference between revisions
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
(Created page with "'''Mottainai''' (もったいない?, ''mottainai'') is a Japanese term conveying a sense of regret concerning waste. == Description == The expression "Mottainai!" can be ut...") |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
'''Mottainai''' (もったいない?, ''mottainai'') is a Japanese term conveying a sense of regret concerning waste. | [[File:Woman-mending-net_Utagawa_Kuniyoshi.jpg|thumb|Woman mending a fishing net (Utagawa Kuniyoshi, 1798 - 1861).]]'''Mottainai''' (もったいない?, ''mottainai'') is a Japanese term conveying a sense of regret concerning waste. | ||
== Description == | == Description == | ||
Revision as of 06:33, 2 June 2016
Mottainai (もったいない?, mottainai) is a Japanese term conveying a sense of regret concerning waste.
Description
The expression "Mottainai!" can be uttered alone as an exclamation when something useful, such as food or time, is wasted, meaning roughly "what a waste!" or "Don't waste."
In addition to its primary sense of "wastefulness", the word is also used to mean "impious; irreverent" or "more than one deserves".
Mottainai is an old Buddhist word, which has ties "with the Shinto idea that objects have souls."
Mottainai has been referred to as a tradition, a cultural practice, and an idea which is still present in Japanese culture, which has become an international concept.
Nonfiction cross-reference
Fiction cross-reference
External links
- Mottainai @ Wikipedia