Believing it
Idioms, Stage 4chunk 11 of 22Noticing & the mind
How much of what you hear you believe, from swallowing it whole to not falling for it.
- ma ni ukerutake it at face value, take it seriouslyliterally “receive it as true”
- unomi ni surubelieve without questionliterally “swallow whole like a cormorant”
- sono te ni wa noranaiI won't fall for thatliterally “won't ride on that move”
- hanshin hangionly half believing itliterally “half belief, half doubt”
Mix-ups ma ni ukeru (take it seriously) vs unomi ni suru (swallow it uncritically); sono te ni wa noranai rejects a trick outright, while hanshin hangi only half believes.
ma ni ukeru
polite ma ni ukemasu
“receive it as true”
take it at face value, take it seriously
In English: take it at face value
It's mostly negative and said after a joke or a flattering line: joudan da yo, ma ni ukenaide (I'm kidding, don't take it seriously). People also say it with regret: ma ni uketa watashi ga baka datta. It's about believing words that weren't meant literally; unomi ni suru is swallowing information or rumours whole.
Plain alternative: honki ni suru (take seriously).
joudan da yo, ma ni ukenaide.
I'm kidding, don't take it seriously.
冗談だよ、真に受けないで。
joudan desu yo, ma ni ukenaide kudasai.
I'm only joking, please don't take it seriously.
冗談ですよ、真に受けないでください。
Written 真に受ける · まにうけるHeard 53× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside unomi ni suru, sono te ni wa noranai, hanshin hangiMain list -nai (Stage 1)
unomi ni suru
polite unomi ni shimasu
“swallow whole like a cormorant”
believe without question
In English: swallow it whole
About information: rumours, something online, what an expert or a salesperson says. It's mostly advice in the negative: unomi ni shinai hou ga ii. Ma ni ukeru is believing a joke or a line that wasn't meant seriously.
netto no uwasa, unomi ni shinai hou ga ii yo.
Don't believe every rumour you read online.
ネットの噂、鵜呑みにしないほうがいいよ。
netto no uwasa wa unomi ni shinai hou ga ii desu yo.
Don't believe every rumour you read online.
ネットの噂は鵜呑みにしないほうがいいですよ。
Written 鵜呑みにする · うのみにするHeard 30× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside ma ni ukeru, sono te ni wa noranai, hanshin hangiMain list suru (Stage 1), -nai hou ga ii (Stage 4)
sono te ni wa noranai
polite sono te ni wa norimasen
“won't ride on that move”
I won't fall for that
A playful or wary comeback when you see through a trick, flattery or bait. Te here means a trick or move, as in a game.
Rough: sono te ni noru ka! (as if I'd fall for that!) or sono te ni wa noran. Also sono te ga atta! (oh, that's an option!).
mata sore? sono te ni wa noranai yo.
That again? I'm not falling for it.
またそれ？その手には乗らないよ。
mata sore desu ka? sono te ni wa norimasen yo.
That again? I'm not falling for it.
またそれですか？その手には乗りませんよ。
Written その手には乗らない · そのてにはのらないHeard 17× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside ma ni ukeru, unomi ni suru, hanshin hangiMain list sono (Stage 1), -nai (Stage 1)
hanshin hangi
polite hanshin hangi desu
“half belief, half doubt”
only half believing it
Said about how you felt at first about news, a rumour or a too-good offer, usually in the past: saisho wa hanshin hangi datta. It works like a na-adjective: hanshin hangi de kiku.
saisho wa hanshin hangi datta kedo, hontou datta n da yo.
I only half believed it at first, but it turned out to be true.
最初は半信半疑だったけど、本当だったんだよ。
saisho wa hanshin hangi deshita kedo, hontou datta n desu yo.
I only half believed it at first, but it turned out to be true.
最初は半信半疑でしたけど、本当だったんですよ。
Written 半信半疑 · はんしんはんぎHeard 5× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside ma ni ukeru, unomi ni suru, sono te ni wa noranaiMain list -katta / -datta (Stage 1), n da yo (Stage 3)