It may not be a common word, but shushu gets major points for being one of those words with such a nuanced definition that you feel like a language master when you finally use it, like “zeitgeist” or “vis-à-vis” in English.

The kanji for this word are shu (“guard/protect”) and shu (“tree stump”). What does guarding a stump have to do with keeping outdated traditions? Here’s the story:

There was a Chinese farmer during the Song Dynasty (960-1279) who was lazy and not very bright.

One day he saw a rabbit run head first into a tree stump, break its neck, and die, which got him an easy meal for that day. Then, the farmer thought, if I just wait by this stump, then another rabbit will come along and do the same thing!

So the farmer quit his work and spent the rest of his days guarding and watching the stump, waiting for another rabbit to come. Of course that did not happen, and the man became the laughing stock of the village.

So if you need to poke fun at someone for sticking to something long after they should’ve let it go, feel free to shushu them and tell them the story about “guarding the tree stump.”