stepping stones
Stones placed at intervals across a garden path, shallow water, or similar, allowing one to walk across without getting wet or muddy.
It's fun to cross the stepping stones in a Japanese garden.
stone skipping; ducks and drakes
Rare term for skipping a flat stone across water. The more common word is 水切り (みずきり).
See also: 水切り
飛び石 can also refer to the game of skipping stones on water, but it's usually called 水切り.
stepping from stone to stone; crossing via stepping stones
series of holidays with workdays in between
Standard spelling for stepping stones and, rarely, stone skipping.
Variant spelling; less common but still seen.
Compound of 飛び (tobi, 'jumping') + 石 (ishi, 'stone'). The literal meaning is 'jumping stone(s)', referring to stones that one jumps across or stones that skip across water.