鎧袖一触

Japanese edit

Kanji in this term
鎧	袖	一	触
がい Jinmeiyō	しゅう Grade: S	いつ > いっ Grade: 1	しょく Grade: S
kan’yōon	kan’on

Alternative spelling
鎧袖一觸 (kyūjitai)

Etymology edit

From 鎧袖 (gaishū, “armoured gauntlet”) +‎ 一触 (isshoku, “single touch”). Attributed to Minamoto no Tametomo, according to the Nihon Gaishi by Rai San'yō:

至如平清盛輩、臣鎧袖一触、皆自倒耳

If the likes of Taira no Kiyomori's comrades were to even slightly brush against the sleeves of my armour, they would all drop dead on their own accord.

Pronunciation edit

IPA^(key): [ɡa̠iɕɨᵝː iɕːo̞kɯ̟ᵝ]

Idiom edit

鎧(がい)袖(しゅう)一(いっ)触(しょく) • (gaishū isshoku)

to defeat an opponent in a single blow^[1]^[2]^[3]
- 2011, Craig L. Symonds, The Battle of Midway (in English), Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 179:
  Instead, Genda Minoru, the resident strategic genius, replied with a boast: "Gaishu Isshoku". Literally this means "One touch of the armored gauntlet"; idiomatically, it connotes an easy victory.
- 2011, Jonathan Parshall, Anthony Tully, Shattered Sword: The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway (in English), Potomac Books, Inc., →ISBN, page 145:
  All eyes turned to Air Officer Genda, whose internal reaction might well have been, "If that happens, we're in terrible trouble." But what he uttered instead was a famous Japanese military phrase: "Gaishu Isshoku (One touch of the armored gauntlet!)," meaning roughly "We'll wipe them out!"

References edit

^ Matsumura, Akira (1995) 大辞泉 (in Japanese), First edition, Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
^ 2013, 新明解四字熟語辞典 (Shinmeikai Yojijukugo Jiten), Second Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
^ 2012, 四字熟語辞典 (Dictionary of Four-Kanji Phrases), Fourth Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Gakken, →ISBN

[DJS-1] Matsumura, Akira (1995) 大辞泉 (in Japanese), First edition, Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN

[2] 2013, 新明解四字熟語辞典 (Shinmeikai Yojijukugo Jiten), Second Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN

[3] 2012, 四字熟語辞典 (Dictionary of Four-Kanji Phrases), Fourth Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Gakken, →ISBN

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