Translation guide
Refers to two distinct creatures: a spider-like arachnid with very long legs (often found indoors) and a flying insect with long legs (crane fly). The Japanese terms differ completely.
The common indoor/outdoor arachnid with a tiny body and extremely long, thin legs (order Opiliones).
The most common everyday term for the arachnid. Literally 'blind masseur bug', from a folk belief that it guides the blind.
There's a daddy longlegs on the ceiling.
Literally 'blind spider'. Older term, now often considered insensitive due to the word 盲 (blind). Still understood.
Contains 盲 (blind), which is now often avoided as discriminatory language. Use 座頭虫 instead.
When I was a kid, I used to catch daddy longlegs often.
Literally 'ghost spider'. A less common poetic or regional name.
Ghost spiders are nocturnal.
The flying insect with long dangling legs, often mistaken for a giant mosquito (family Tipulidae).
In English, 'daddy longlegs' can refer to either a long-legged arachnid or a crane fly. In Japanese, these are completely different words. Make sure you know which one you mean.
Even if you say 'daddy longlegs,' the listener might not know which one you mean.
The word メクラグモ contains 盲 (blind), which is now considered discriminatory. Use 座頭虫 for the arachnid instead.
Let's say 座頭虫 instead of メクラグモ.
カトンボって刺さないんだよ。
Crane flies don't bite, you know.