肩身

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 肩身 is read as かたみ and is a noun for one’s social position or sense of standing, chiefly used in expressions about feeling constrained or out of place.
• Basic usage: Feeling constrained within a team appears in 肩身が狭い, while experiencing that position appears in 肩身の狭い思いをする.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Learn it through the idiom
  • It does not describe shoulder width; it expresses feeling unable to hold one’s head high or at ease among others.
• Difference from 立場
  • Compared with position or circumstances in general, this term carries the social feeling of embarrassment and constraint.