"Shee-ree-toh-ree"
Roughly translated as "Take the butt."
Shiritori is a word game played in Japan by bored people, especially children on long train rides. This is similar to the way the game Going on a Picnic is played in the United States.
The rules of the game are:
- Somebody says a word.
- The next person says a word that starts with the last kana of the previous word.
- Anyone who says a word that ends with the 'n' kana loses (No words in Japanese start with 'n').
- (Optional) The same word cannot be used twice in a game.
- (Optional) No verbs.
Play continues until all players except one have lost, or the destination has been reached, or (most likely) until the players have lost interest.
Example of play
Tanaka: Ame.
Kurosawa: Megane.
Tanaka: Neko.
Kurosawa: Kougaku.
Tanaka: Kuma.
Kurosawa: Manga.
Tanaka: Gakuin... are!?