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I've run into the expression 嗜み quite often lately, mostly in the form of
"XXXの嗜み", like 大人の嗜み or メイドの嗜み

Googling around, I think I understand that it means something along the lines
of "what you should know as XXX", but I'm not quite sure I get all the nuances
of the word.

Could someone explain to me the scope of 嗜み and in what situation I might use
the word?
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2018-03-27T12:22:31.237
57560
2018-03-28T02:13:40.103
27499
question
meaning words
Meaning of 嗜み（たしなみ）
嗜み means two different things:

  1. hobby; enjoyment as an amateur
  2. what you should know to be a refined X; basic knowledge/experience for X

So 大人の嗜み can refer to either:

  * hobbies only adults can enjoy (e.g., wine and cigarette. See [this article](https://gakumado.mynavi.jp/freshers/articles/47871) for example)
  * what you should know/have as a mature adult (See [this article](https://stylestore.jp/note/detail/3054) for example)

メイドの嗜み almost certainly refers to "what you should be able to do as a maid"
because "hobby (only) for maids" doesn't make much sense to me.

The verb version, 嗜む, also means two things, "to casually enjoy something as a
hobby" and "to have the basic knowledge/experience on something".

嗜む/嗜み is an elegant word that is typically used with uncommon "upper-class"
activities like 乗馬, テニス, チェス, ピアノ and 生け花. Saying アニメを嗜む is not wrong but may
sound a little funny.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2018-03-27T12:54:25.277
57561
2018-03-28T02:13:40.103
2018-03-28T02:13:40.103
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answer