Worth the money
Idioms, Stage 4chunk 21 of 22Luck, trouble & outcomes
Money and value: not worth it, costs adding up, getting your money back, a pitiful sum.
- wari ni awanainot worth it, doesn't payliterally “doesn't match the ratio”
- baka ni naranai(costs) really add upliterally “doesn't become foolish (= can't be laughed off as trivial)”
- moto o torurecoup what you paidliterally “take back the principal”
- suzume no namidaa pitifully small amount (usually of money)literally “a sparrow's tears”
Mix-ups wari ni awanai (doesn't pay) vs moto o toru (get your money's worth); baka ni naranai (costs add up) vs suzume no namida (a tiny amount).
wari ni awanai
polite wari ni aimasen
“doesn't match the ratio”
not worth it, doesn't pay
A grumble when the reward doesn't cover the effort or risk, like low pay for a hard job: kono kyuuryou ja wari ni awanai. It's nearly always negative; the positive wari ni au (it pays) is rare.
Plain alternative: son (a loss), as in son da yo.
kono jikyuu ja wari ni awanai yo
It's not worth it for this hourly pay.
この時給じゃ割に合わないよ
kono jikyuu ja wari ni aimasen yo
It doesn't pay at this hourly rate.
この時給じゃ割に合いませんよ
Written 割に合わない · わりにあわないHeard 26× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside moto o toruMain list -nai (Stage 1)
baka ni naranai
polite baka ni narimasen
“doesn't become foolish (= can't be laughed off as trivial)”
(costs) really add up
Said mostly about money that seems small but adds up, like train fares, coffee or phone bills: koutsuuhi mo baka ni naranai. Don't confuse it with baka ni suru (make fun of) or baka o miru (end up the loser).
Variant: baka ni dekinai; plain alternative: kekkou kakaru (costs quite a bit).
koutsuuhi mo baka ni naranai yo
Train fares really add up too.
交通費もバカにならないよ
koutsuuhi mo baka ni narimasen yo
Travel costs really add up as well.
交通費もバカになりませんよ
Written バカにならない · ばかにならないHeard 4× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesMain list naru (Stage 1), -nai (Stage 1)
moto o toru
polite moto o torimasu
“take back the principal”
recoup what you paid
In English: get your money's worth
Said about buffets, gym memberships, passes and pricey gadgets: tabehoudai de moto o toru (eat enough to make the buffet worth it). The negative moto ga torenai (it won't pay for itself) is just as common.
Intransitive: moto ga toreru (it pays for itself).
tabehoudai da kara moto toranakya
It's all-you-can-eat, gotta get our money's worth.
食べ放題だから元取らなきゃ
tabehoudai desu kara, moto o toranai to ikemasen ne
It's all-you-can-eat, so we should get our money's worth.
食べ放題ですから、元を取らないといけませんね
Written 元を取る · もとをとるHeard 2× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside wari ni awanaiMain list toru (Stage 4), -nakya (Stage 3)
suzume no namida
polite suzume no namida desu
“a sparrow's tears”
a pitifully small amount (usually of money)
In English: peanuts
The stock complaint about pay, bonuses, pensions or interest, often as suzume no namida hodo: boonasu wa suzume no namida hodo datta. Mostly about money, though any tiny amount can qualify.
Plain alternative: hon no sukoshi (just a tiny bit).
boonasu, suzume no namida datta yo.
My bonus was a pittance.
ボーナス、雀の涙だったよ。
boonasu wa suzume no namida deshita.
The bonus was next to nothing.
ボーナスは雀の涙でした。
Written 雀の涙 · すずめのなみだHeard 3× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesMain list hodo (Stage 4), -katta / -datta (Stage 1)