How to say "soul" in Japanese

• 魂たましいCommon
  nounThe core word for the soul as the essence of a person, whether living or after death. Use it when talking about someone's inner being, or phrases like selling one's soul.
  魂たましいの吐息といきを感かんじ始はじめた。↗

  I'm feeling the breath of life.
• 霊れいCommon
  nounCovers the soul especially as a departed spirit or ghost. It is the word you want for spirits of the dead, hauntings, and the supernatural rather than for a living person's soul.
  これで彼かれの霊れいも浮うかばれるだろう。↗

  With this his spirit will be consoled.
• 精神せいしんJLPT N3approx.Common
  nounBest for 'soul' in the sense of mind, spirit, or inner strength, as in mental attitude or willpower. It is not used for ghosts or the soul after death.
  我々われわれは精神せいしんを養やしなわなければならない。↗

  We need to nourish our spirit.
• 霊魂れいこんCommon
  nounA compound meaning soul and spirit together, found mainly in religious, philosophical, or academic writing. For everyday talk about the soul, 魂 is usually the more natural choice.
  私は霊魂れいこんの不滅ふめつを信しんじる。↗

  I believe in the immortality of the soul.
• 心霊しんれいCommon
  no-adjectiveRarely the word you want for 'soul' on its own; it appears chiefly in spiritual or paranormal contexts, such as talk of spirits and psychic phenomena.

Use 魂 for the soul as a living essence, 霊 for souls of the dead or ghosts, 精神 for mind and spirit in a psychological sense, and the compounds 霊魂 and 心霊 mainly in religious or spiritual contexts.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 魂たましいsoul
• 霊れいsoul
• 精神せいしんmind
• 霊魂れいこんsoul
• 心霊しんれいspirit (e.g. human spirit)
• 精魂せいこんsoul
• 気迫きはくspirit
• 気骨きこつ(moral) backbone
• 真髄しんずいessence
• ソウルsoul
• 精霊せいれいspirit
• 魂魄こんぱくsoul
• まぶいspirit
• プネウマpneuma
• 生命せいめいlife force
• 神霊しんれいsoul (of a dead person)