Translation guide
How to express 'tacking' in Japanese, covering sailing, sewing, and figurative uses.
The sailing maneuver where a boat turns its bow through the wind to change direction.
The most direct equivalent, a loanword from English. Commonly used in sailing contexts.
風向きが変わったので、タッキングを繰り返した。
Since the wind direction changed, we repeated tacking.
A traditional Japanese sailing term for tacking, literally 'windward turn'. Less common than タッキング but still used.
上手回しのタイミングが難しい。
The timing of tacking is difficult.
An archaic term for tacking, rarely used in modern Japanese. Found in historical or traditional sailing texts.
昔の船乗りは間切りを駆使して風上へ進んだ。
Sailors of old used tacking to make headway upwind.
The act of sewing with long, loose stitches to temporarily hold pieces together before final sewing.
The standard term for basting or tacking in sewing. Can be used as a noun or verb (しつけをする, しつけをかける).
まずしつけをしてから、ミシンで縫います。
First, do some tacking, then sew with the machine.
Literally 'temporary sewing', often used interchangeably with しつけ, but can also refer to a fitting or trial sewing.
To change one's course of action, opinion, or strategy, similar to a sailing tack.
A general phrase meaning 'to change direction', applicable to strategies, policies, or plans.
会社は戦略を方向転換した。
The company tacked in its strategy.
Literally 'change policy/course', a natural way to express a shift in approach.
政府は経済政策の方針を変えた。
The government tacked on economic policy.
A metaphorical expression meaning 'to steer a new course', evoking the image of turning a ship's rudder. More vivid and literary.
彼は突然舵を切って、新しい事業に乗り出した。
He suddenly tacked and embarked on a new venture.
The act of fastening something with tacks (small nails).
Specifically means to fasten with thumbtacks or drawing pins. Use when the context is about pinning paper to a board.
ポスターを画鋲で留めた。
I tacked the poster to the wall.
A more general term for fastening with any kind of tack or rivet. Can be used for upholstery or leatherwork.
布を鋲で留めて椅子を修理した。
I tacked the fabric to repair the chair.
While タッキング is used in sailing, it is not used metaphorically in Japanese. For figurative 'tacking' (changing approach), use phrases like 方向転換する or 方針を変える.
仮縫いで布を留めてください。
Please tack the fabric with temporary stitches.