It’s funny how words in one language don’t always match up with words in another, especially when you’re talking about languages as different as English and Japanese. Take the word sasuga (sah-soo-GAH), which is used to express praise when one’s expectations have been met. For example, if a man named Yamada-san surprised you by knowing a bit of unexpected trivia, you might say, “Sasuga, Yamada-san!” which could be translated as “Good old Yamada-san!” or “I always knew you could do it, Yamada-san!” or perhaps, “I had a feeling you woundn’t let us down, Yamada-san!” These linguistic differences cause headaches for translators because there’s often no “best” way to express something in another language, making translation between Japanese and English about the least exact science there is. Some other short Japanese phrases that crop up in anime yet have potentially long and complex translations in English include masaka! (MAH-sah-kah), meaning “You’ve got to be joking!” and yappari (ya-PAH-ree), translatable as, “just as I suspected.”
