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A long but by no means exhaustive list, compiled from many sources. Any errors are my own. Please feel free to contact me with comments or corrections. In time I will add or amend definitions as required.
Etiquette
Deshi - Student;disciple
Domo Arigato Gozaimashita – Thank you very much for that which you have done
Gomen Nasai: I’m sorry
Kohai – Junior
Konban Wa: Good evening
Onegaishimasu – Please assist me
Rei – Bow, salute
Sayonara – Goodbye
Seiza - Seated posture, correct sitting
Sempai – Senior
Sensei – Teacher, literally “one who has gone before”
Shidoshi – licensed teacher in the Bujinkan system
Shidoshi-ho – teacher serving under the guidance of a full shidoshi
Shikin haramitsu dai ko myo – “In every instance there is the possibility for enlightenment” This is one very short translation of these words – there are many others.
Soke – “head of family”
Yame – Stop
Numbers
ichi – one
ni – two
san – three
shi / yon – four
go – five
roku – six
shichi / nana – seven
hachi – eight
ku / kyu – nine
ju – ten
Weapons
Ashiko – Foot Claws
Bokken – Wooden sword used for training
Daisho - The set of katana and kodachi
Daito - Longer Japanese sword
Hanbo – 3 foot wooden staff
Jo – 4 foot wooden staff
Jutte - A metal truncheon
Katana – Sword
Kodachi - Short sword
Kogatana - Small utility knife mounted in a kozuka, located in a side pocket of the saya
Kunai – Leaf shaped digging tool
Kusari Fundo – A 100 cm chain with weighted ends
Kusari Gama – Traditional Chain and sickle weapon
Metsubushi - Eye blinding powder, smoke, pepper, etc.
Naginata – Halberd
Rokushakabo – Six foot staff
Saya - Japanese sword scabbard
Shinai – bamboo training sword
Shuko: Hand claws
Shuriken – Small throwing weapons, either senban shuriken which are flat with sharp edges or bo shuriken which are spikes.
Suburi Bokken - Heavy wooden sword used for solo drills
Tachi - Long sword; a longer version of the katana. worn hanging from the belt edge down
Tanto – Knife
Tessen – Iron fan
Tsuba - Sword guard (hilt)
Shoto – Short sword
Wakazashi: Short sword
Yari - Spear
Yoroi - A suit of armor
A to Z
A
Ashi - Leg
Ashi Ori - Break the leg
Ashigaru - A foot soldier of the mid to late Muromachi period and later. A fighting man below samurai rank.
Atemi - Strike; striking the vital points
Atsu - Press
B
Bajutsu - Horsemanship
Batto - The flowing motion of sword drawing and cutting. The “art of drawing the long sword”.
Bojutsu – Art of using six foot staff fighting methods
Boshi - The tempered part of the blade above the yokote around the kissaki (tip)
Boshi ken - Thumb drive fist
Budo- Martial ways
Budo taijutsu- Unarmed combat methods of the Bujinkan
Budoka- One who studies the martial way
Bugei - Martial skill.
Bugei-sha - A master strategist, one who studies the Art of War.
Bujin - Warrior spirit
Bujinden - Hatsumi Sensei’s hombu dojo
Bujinkan - Divine warrior training hall
Bujutsu - Martial arts; martial techniques
Buki - Weapon
Bushi - Japanese warrior
Butsumetsu - Kyusho; side of the torso, floating ribs
C
Chi - Earth
Chi no Kata - Earth form
Chi-No-Ri - Understanding, in heiho the art of using the terrain.
Chi Ryaku - Earth principle
Choku-so - A straight spear blade.
Chu - Middle
Chu-Sosei - In sojutsu the understanding the significance of basic posture in seeking an opening for a successful attack.
Chudan - Middle level
D
Dai - Large, big, great
Daikomyosai - Three day event celebrating Hatsumi Sensei’s birthday
Daisho - The set of katana and kodachi
Daito - Longer Japanese sword
Dakentaijutsu - Striking, punching, kicking body methods
Dan - Level or degree of black belt
Densho - Traditional scrolls
Do - Path, road, way; motion; change
Dojo - Training hall, place of the way
Doko - Angry tiger
Dori - To seize, catch
F
Fu - Wind
Fudo - Immobility
Fudo ken - Clenched fist
Fudoza - Immovable seat
Furi - To spin or twirl
G
Ganseki - Rock
Ganseki nage - To drop a big rock
Gata - One; also means style, pattern, form
Ge - Low
Gedan - Lower level
Gedan uke - Downward receiving flow
Geri - Kick
Geta - Wooden clogs
Gi - Training uniform (also dogi or keikogi)
Gikan - Regard for justice
Gogyo - The five elements: Chi Sui, Ka, fu, Ku.
Goroshi - To kill
Gyaku - Reverse; joint manipulation
H
Ha - The Edge(s) of a blade
Hajime - Begin
Hakama - Pleated divided skirt
Han: Half
Happo - Eight ways (all directional)
Hara - Belly; center of one’s body
Heiho - Strategy; martial principles; warfare tactics, the art of generalship in medieval times
Henka - Change; variation
Hicho - Flying bird
Hidari - Left
Hiji - Elbow
Hira - Flat, even, level
Hodoki - Free, loosen, unbind, get untied
Hojo - Binding and securing
Hojojutsu - Binding techniques using a rope or cord to restrain prisoners
Hoko - Encircling tiger
Hombu - Main dojo
Horimono - Engraved designs of many kinds cut into the surface of a blade
I
Iai - Motion of drawing a sword and cutting
Ichimonji - Straight line (posture)
In - To hide
Inyo - Japanese name for Yin-Yang
Itami - Pain
J
Jime: – To constrict, tighten, choke
Jin - Human being, person
Jodan - Upper level
Jodan uke - Upper receiving flow
Jojutsu - Techniques of using a jo
Jujutsu - Techniques of flexibility; art of flexibility
Jumonji - Figure ten posture, Crossed arm position
Junan taiso - Body conditioning and flexibility
Jutaijutsu - Grappling methods, throws, locks, holds, soft body method
Jutsu - Techniques; art or method
K
Ka -Fire
Kaeshi - To turn over, throw
Kaiten - Rolling; overturn
Kamae - Attitude, posture, stance
Kanji - Chinese pictographic characters used in written Japanese
Kata - Shoulder; arranged forms; single, one; style, type, pattern
Keiko - Training; practice
Ken - Fist; heavy straight-blade sword; weapon
Keri - To kick also geri
Kesa giri: Diagonal cut
Ki - Internal energy, spirit, mind, heart, soul
Kiai - Spirit shout; a focused, directed yell
Kihon - Foundation, basic, fundamental
Kihon happo - Fundamentals; eight ways
Kimono - Traditional dress of the Japanese
Kiri - To cut; also a mist, fog
Kobudo - Classical martial ways
Kogoroshi - Killing the child (little finger)
Koho - Rear, back
Kokoro - Spirit, heart, or mind
Koppojutsu: Bone striking method
Koshi - Hip area; loins
Koshijutsu - Organ and muscle strikes
Kote - Wrist
Ku - Air, sky; emptiness, void; also the number 9
Kudaki - Crush, break, smash; shatter
Kuden - Oral teachings
Kukan – Space
Kunoichi – female ninja
Kusarifundo: Short chain with weighted ends
Kusarigama: Sickle and chain
Kyojitsu: Play of truth and deception; a feint
Kyojutsu tenkan ho: interchange of falsehood and reality
Kyoketsu shoge: Hooked blade weapon with weighted cord
Kyu – Step, grade; rank of green belt
Kyudo - Archery; way of the bow
Kyusho - Vital points, pressure points, weak points
M
Ma ai - Distancing; correct distance
Mae - Front
Mae geri - Front kick
Matte - Stop
Men - Head; all parts of the head, the face
Migi - Right
Mune - Chest
Musha - Warrior
Muto - No sword
Muto dori - Unarmed against a sword
N
Nagare - Flowing
Nagashi - Receiving flow; parry; deflect
Nage - To throw
Naname - Diagonal
O
Obi - Belt or sash
Omote - Outside, front; apparent, concepts easily understood
Oni - Devil, demon
Ori - To break
Otoshi - To drop
Oyagoroshi - Killing the parent (the thumb)
R
Randori - Freestyle rotational practice
Ryote - Two-handed
Ryu - Dragon; flowing; school, tradition; family; a style
Ryuha - Branch of original style or school
S
Sabaki: Evasion, footwork
Sanshin no kata: Three hearts movement methods
Seishin-Tanren - To “polish one’s spirit” through hard training.
Seiza - Seated posture, correct sitting
Sempai: Any student senior to another
Sensei: Teacher or instructor, “one who has gone before”
Shako ken: Claw and palm strike
Shaku - Old unit of measure. One shaku equals 11.93 inches.
Shi - Four; finger
Shichi - Seven
Shimenawa - A twisted rope made of rice straw and hung with paper streamers which is used to denote a sacred or purified building or area. The shimenawa is normally replaced every year.
Shin - Heart, mind, spirit
Shinai - Practice sword made of split bamboo
Shinken gata - Real fighting form or feeling
Shidoshi - Teacher, godan or higher
Shidoshi-ho - Assistant teacher
Shihan - Honorary title of master teacher
Shikan ken - Extended knuckle fist
Shikomi zue - A walking stick with hidden weapon
Shime - To choke, constrict, tighten
Shinobi - Another name for the ninja
Shinodake - Hollow bamboo cane used to breathe underwater
Shishin ken - Finger needle strike
Shitan ken - Thumb pressure strike
Shizen - Natural
Shomen - The front
Shomen uchi - Forehead strike
Shoten no jutsu - Tree climbing (climbing to the heavens)
Shoto - Short sword
Shuko: Hand claws
Shuriken - Throwing blades, throwing stars
Shuto, Shuto ken - Knife hand or open sword hand
Sodegarami - A “sleeve entangler”, a barbed polearm used to restrain armed felons.
Sojutsu - Art of fighting with a spear
Soke - Head of family; grandmaster
Sokugyaku - Ball of foot kick
Sokuho kaiten - Sideways roll
Sokuho tobi - Sideways leap
Sokuyaku - Foot strike
Sokugyaku - Toe strike
Sui - Water
Suiren - Water training
T
Tabi - Traditional footwear of the Japanese
Tai - Large, big, great; also refers to the body
Tai sabaki - Body evasion; natural movements for evading attacks
Taihenjutsu - Body changing arts: rolling, leaping, silent movement, tumbling, breakfalls
Taijutsu - Body techniques, unarmed combat methods
Taiso - Flexibility exercise; stretches
Takagi - Tall tree, large tree
Take - Bamboo
Tanto - Knife; dagger; dirk
Tatami - Straw mat
Te - Hand; arm
Ten - Heaven, sky; top
Tessen - Iron fan
To - And; head; sword
Tobi - Leaping and jumping skills
Tobi keri - Leaping kick
Tori - To seize, catch; the one applying the technique
Tsuki: Thrust, punch
U
Uchi - Inside; to attack, defeat, destroy, conquer, strike
Ude - Arm
Uke - Receive; one who receives the technique
Uke nagashi - Receiving the attack; receiving flow
Ukemi - The act of taking a controlled fall when thrown; receiving techniques in kata; breakfalls
Ura - Inside, back, hidden; concepts that are not obvious
Ushiro - Rear, back
W
Waza - Technique; ability, skill
Y
Yamabushi - Mountain warrior priests
Yoko - Side; sideways
Yoko aruki - Sideways walking
Yokomen - Side of the head
Yoshin - Raising spirit, raising heart
Yumi - Archery bow
Z
Zenpo - Forward, front direction
Zenpo geri - Forward stamp kick
Zenpo kaiten - Forward roll
