Dear Bilingual Friends,
How to describe someone who (hilariously) may be thinking too highly of themselves?
日本語で言ううぬぼれている人や、大（だい）それた願望を持っている人ですね！自分についても「大それた望みを持っていない」など、謙遜の意を表しますね。
「思い上がる」を英語で何と言う？
In English you may try the below variations to make your speech a bit more rich:
★Don’t flatter ourselves – we are just some shady salesmen.
★He is a smug. Arrogant and vain. He always looks complacent of his work which isn’t really so impressive.
★Self-deprecation and modesty are different – the former is not healthy.
「自画自賛」vs「手前みそ」
If you are a English speaker and want to know more Japanese versions of “having a too high opinion of oneself,” here are some to grab and go.
自画自賛 – May possibly use this on someone in close to you. Could sound disrespectful to use in front of Japanese without any caution!
手前みそ – May not be appropriate to use on others. Try to use it for ourselves in an unassuming manner.
終わりに
すこしセンシティブな意味合いが含まれているため、自由自在に使うまで少し慣れる時間を持ったほうがよさそうですね。まずは、こういった言葉を聞いたときに認識できていればいいのではないでしょうか。
