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手ぐすね引く (てぐすねひく) Japanese meaning | Kotomora
Meanings 1
expression, godan verb (-ku)
be ready and waiting ; lie in wait
idiomatic expression
Idiomatic expression often used in the form 手ぐすね引いて待つ or 手ぐすね引いて待ち構える, meaning to be fully prepared and waiting for an opportunity, often with a sense of alertness or anticipation. Derived from the image of applying pine resin (薬煉) to one's hands for a better grip.
ライバル 会社がいしゃ は 手て ぐすね 引ひ い て 待ま ち 構かま え て いる 。
The rival company is lying in wait, fully prepared.
Written forms 手て ぐすね 引ひ く
Standard kanji-kana mixed spelling for this idiomatic phrase.
手て ぐすねひく
Kana spelling of the verb part; less common but still seen.
手薬煉引てぐすねひ く
Ateji spelling using 薬煉 for ぐすね; etymological but rarely used in modern writing.
手薬練引てぐすねひ く
Variant ateji spelling; very rare.
Kanji 薬 medicine, chemical, enamel 煉 refine metals, kneading over fire Similar words 待ま ち 構かま える 待ち構える simply means 'to lie in wait' or 'to be ready and waiting', while 手ぐすね引く adds the nuance of being fully prepared and often implies a proactive, sometimes cunning readiness.
虎こ 視し 眈たん 々たん 虎視眈々 describes watching for an opportunity with keen vigilance, often with a predatory connotation, whereas 手ぐすね引く emphasizes being physically or mentally prepared to act when the moment comes.
Etymology From 手に薬煉を引く (てにくすねをひく), meaning 'to apply pine resin to one's hands'. The phrase originally referred to archers or warriors coating their hands with resin to improve grip, metaphorically extended to mean being fully prepared and waiting for an opportunity.
