五十歩百歩

Shortening of 五十歩をもって百歩を笑う (gojippo o motte hyappo o warau, “to laugh at a hundred steps after having [gone] fifty steps”), in turn ultimately a learned borrowing from Chinese 五十步笑百步 (wǔshí bù xiào bǎi bù, literally “fifty steps laughs at one hundred steps”), from a story by Mencius wherein two characters are running away from a battle and the one going fifty steps laughs at the one having gone one hundred steps for being a coward. The point of the expression is that both have run away, and the difference is purely a matter of degree.[1][2][3][4]

The longer form is first cited to 1714, and the shortened form is first cited to around 1716.[1] The shortened form now appears to have replaced the longer form.

• (Tokyo) ごじっぽひゃ​っぽ [gòjíppó hyáꜜppò] (Nakadaka – [5])[3][4][5]
• IPA^(key): [ɡo̞ʑip̚po̞ ça̠p̚po̞]

• (Tokyo) ごじゅっぽひゃ​っぽ [gòjúppó hyáꜜppò] (Nakadaka – [5])[5]
• IPA^(key): [ɡo̞ʑɨᵝp̚po̞ ça̠p̚po̞]

五(ご)十(じっ)歩(ぽ)百(ひゃっ)歩(ぽ) or 五(ご)十(じゅっ)歩(ぽ)百(ひゃっ)歩(ぽ) • (gojippo hyappo or gojuppo hyappo) 

1. [from 1716] pot calling the kettle black; six of one, half a dozen of the other

• Though gojippo hyappo is the traditional reading and is the one listed in most dictionaries,[1][2][3][4] gojuppo hyappo appears to also be in common use.[5]

• 目糞鼻糞(めくそはなくそ)を笑(わら)う (mekuso hanakuso o warau, literally “the eye booger laughs at the nose booger”)
• 目糞鼻糞(めくそはなくそ) (mekuso hanakuso, literally “eye booger, nose booger”)