Definitions
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Examples
“He brings up the notion of "mottainai," a word that is difficult to translate into English yet explains why the Japanese save wrapping paper from gifts to use again and again.”
“She also tells the tale of how she was introduced to the Buddhist word mottainai, which means to treat all resources with respect and gratitude, and how she now focuses on the 4 R's "reduce, reuse, recycle and repair.”
“(節約, scrimping and saving) is on everyone's lips these days, not to mention that well-worn phrase mottainai (もったいない, waste not want not), which now appears in print more often as romanji or katakana as if it was some exotic imported word rather than something our grandmothers used to say, nay - holler at least 15 times a day.”
“Wangari Maathai visited Japan in 2005, empathised with “mottainai”, starting the activities”
“Japan's success as a global role model in energy efficiency is rooted in a deep-seated cultural value of "mottainai", which translates as "too precious to waste".”
The Huffington Post: Daniel Yergin: Energy Efficiency: The New "First Fuel"
“You know, when I looked at that tree and realized that only 35% will be used, I just thought to myself -- what a mottainai!”
Marianne Schnall: Interview with Wangari Maathai, Environmental Activist and Nobel Laureate
“The “mottainai” campaign is conspicuous by its absence from this table.”
“The best translation of "mottainai," Mr. Yergin writes, is "too precious to waste.”
“The Japanese believe in * mottainai* which is to regret wastefulness when something is not used to its fullest.”
“WHAT does mottainai mean?" asks the sprightly, bespectacled grandmother.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘mottainai’.
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emotional
acedia, anomie, saudade, sehnsucht, mono no aware, sunt lacrimae rer..., wabi-sabi, iki, mottainai, limerence, litost
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complex emotion, single word
I keep looking for lists of these; most are too wide-ranging and/or orientalist* to be useful. Here's a start. Suggestions welcome.
I didn't want to include all the old chestnuts, but ...weltschmerz, anomie, schadenfreude, accidie, angst, ennui, sehnsucht, saudade, toska, akrasia, funktionslust, natsukashi and 9 more...
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