軽い
karui
Why a box and a mouth are both 'light' in Japanese
The picture You lift it and nothing drags your arm down — it comes straight up. 軽い is the arm rising easily; 重い is the arm being dragged down.
Where the picture shows up in 軽い
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the arm rises
この箱は軽いので一人で運べます。
kono hako wa karui node hitori de hakobe-masu
This box is light, so I can carry it alone.
Hands grip the box handles and the arms come up with no resistance
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the body doesn't drag
今日は体が軽いです。
kyō wa karada ga karui desu
My body feels light today.
Feet taking the stairs two steps at a time first thing in the morning
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only a shallow degree
軽いけがで済みました。
karui kega de sumi-mashita
It was only a light injury.
One bandage goes on and the person walks straight back to work
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a small meal
昼は軽く食べます。
hiru wa karuku tabe-masu
I eat light at lunch.
One rice ball and a cup of tea on the desk, nothing else
軽く食べる means eating a small, quick amount — not eating something light in texture.
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a mouth that leaks
口が軽い人には話せません。
kuchi ga karui hito ni wa hanase-masen
You can't tell anything to someone with a light mouth.
What you said flows out of his mouth and straight into the next person's ear
All of it in one picture
軽い is one feeling: nothing pulling downward. A box that doesn't pull is light; a body that doesn't pull is in good shape; an injury that doesn't pull is nothing serious; a meal that doesn't pull is a quick bite. And a mouth that doesn't hold anything down lets every word you told it slide straight out.