Bound to happen
Idioms, Stage 3chunk 21 of 22Luck, trouble & outcomes
Remarks about what is sure to come, or come again: a matter of time, a repeat failure, threes, experts slipping.
- jikan no mondaionly a matter of timeliterally “a question of time”
- ni no maia repeat of an earlier failure (someone else's, or last time's)literally “the second dance (a clown copying the first dancer)”
- nido aru koto wa sando aruif it happened twice, it'll happen againliterally “what happens twice happens three times”
- sandome no shoujikithe third try will be the oneliterally “the third time's honesty”
- saru mo ki kara ochirueven experts make mistakesliterally “even monkeys fall from trees”
Mix-ups nido aru koto wa sando aru (bad luck repeats) vs sandome no shoujiki (the third try works) predict opposite thirds; ni no mai is repeating one particular past failure.
jikan no mondai
polite jikan no mondai desu
“a question of time”
only a matter of time
In English: only a matter of time
Said when something is bound to happen sooner or later, most often being found out, caught or a collapse: bareru no wa jikan no mondai da, mou jikan no mondai da.
bareru no wa jikan no mondai da yo
It's only a matter of time before they find out.
バレるのは時間の問題だよ
bareru no wa jikan no mondai desu yo
It's only a matter of time before they find out.
バレるのは時間の問題ですよ
Written 時間の問題 · じかんのもんだいHeard 207× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesMain list jikan (Stage 4)
ni no mai
polite ni no mai desu
“the second dance (a clown copying the first dancer)”
a repeat of an earlier failure (someone else's, or last time's)
Almost always X no ni no mai, where X is the person or event whose failure you'd repeat: a groan (kore ja zenkai no ni no mai da, it's last time all over again), a refusal (X no ni no mai wa gomen da, I'm not going through X again) or a warning (senpai no ni no mai ni naranai you ni). Don't confuse it with ni no ashi o fumu (hesitate).
Written form: ni no mai o enjiru. You'll also hear ni no mai o fumu, a blend with ni no ashi o fumu that dictionaries call a mistake.
senpai no ni no mai ni naranai you ni ne.
Don't end up like your senpai, OK?
先輩の二の舞にならないようにね。
zenkai no ni no mai ni naranai you ni shimashou.
Let's not repeat what happened last time.
前回の二の舞にならないようにしましょう。
Written 二の舞 · にのまいHeard 28× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesMain list -you ni (Stage 4), naru (Stage 1)
nido aru koto wa sando aru
“what happens twice happens three times”
if it happened twice, it'll happen again
Quoted after a second mishap, like losing an umbrella again or a second breakdown, as a half-joking warning that a third one is coming. The comeback is sandome no shoujiki (third time lucky).
Comeback: sandome no shoujiki (third time's the charm).
nido aru koto wa sando aru tte iu shi, ki o tsukete ne
They say what happens twice happens again, so be careful.
二度あることは三度あるって言うし、気をつけてね
nido aru koto wa sando aru tte iimasu kara ne
They do say what happens twice happens again.
二度あることは三度あるって言いますからね
Written 二度あることは三度ある · にどあることはさんどあるHeard too rare in film subtitles to countLearn alongside sandome no shoujikiMain list aru (Stage 1), koto (Stage 3), -shi (Stage 1), ki o tsukete (Stage 1)
sandome no shoujiki
polite sandome no shoujiki desu
“the third time's honesty”
the third try will be the one
In English: third time's the charm
Said before a third attempt at an exam, a confession or a game, or after it finally works: kondo koso sandome no shoujiki da. It is the hopeful answer to nido aru koto wa sando aru.
kondo koso sandome no shoujiki da!
Third time's the charm!
今度こそ三度目の正直だ！
sandome no shoujiki de, yatto goukaku shimashita.
Third time lucky, I finally passed.
三度目の正直で、やっと合格しました。
Written 三度目の正直 · さんどめのしょうじきHeard 3× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside nido aru koto wa sando aruMain list kondo (Stage 3), yatto (Stage 1)
saru mo ki kara ochiru
“even monkeys fall from trees”
even experts make mistakes
Said kindly or teasingly when someone skilled slips up. It calls the person a monkey, so never say it to or about a superior (koubou ni mo fude no ayamari is the respectful version). Said about yourself, it's a joke that casts you as the expert. For ordinary mistakes say dare ni demo aru (it happens to everyone).
Plain alternative: dare ni demo machigai wa aru (anyone can make a mistake).
saru mo ki kara ochiru tte yatsu da ne
Even the pros slip up, huh.
猿も木から落ちるってやつだね
puro demo misu suru n desu ne. saru mo ki kara ochiru tte iimasu kara ne
So even pros make mistakes. Even monkeys fall from trees, as they say.
プロでもミスするんですね。猿も木から落ちるって言いますからね
Written 猿も木から落ちる · さるもきからおちるHeard too rare in film subtitles to countMain list mo (Stage 2)