How to say "warrior" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- 侍さむらいnounA historical term for the samurai, especially the military retainers of daimyos in the Edo period. It is the word you meet in talk of history and period drama.
- 武者むしゃnounA warrior in the armed sense: the image is of an armored fighting man of earlier times, not of a modern soldier.
- 戦士せんしnounThe broadest word for a fighter: a soldier or combatant in war, and a warrior in fantasy and games. It is also used figuratively of a person locked in a struggle.
- 武士ぶしnounA samurai, or the samurai as a class: it denotes the warrior class of old Japan and any member of it, and it is at home in historical writing about that class.
- 武人ぶじんnounA military man or warrior, often suggesting martial character and bearing — a man of soldierly spirit.
For a fighter or combatant in any era choose 戦士; for the samurai of old Japan choose 侍 or 武士; 武者 pictures an armed warrior of the past, and 武人 a man of martial spirit.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
See also
This browser can't play pronunciations (needs Safari 18.4 or later, or Chrome / Edge / Firefox).
