JLPT N2Proverbs
灯台下暗し
- Meaning
- 身近なことはかえって気づきにくい
- Explanation
- 「灯台下暗し」 means that, just as a lighthouse lights up distant places but its base is dark, things close at hand are surprisingly hard to notice. It is the opposite of 「遠くのことほど見えにくい」 (the farther away, the harder to see), expressing a situation where something is overlooked because it is too close.
Original Japanese explanation
「灯台下暗し」は、灯台が遠くを照らして足元が暗いように、身近なことはかえって気づきにくいという意味です。「遠くのことほど見えにくい」とは逆で、近すぎて見落としてしまう状況を表します。
Quick check
Choose the most appropriate meaning expressed by 「灯台下暗し」.
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