運命|うんめいunmei[1]atamadaka (head-high)

1. no-adjectivefate; destiny; lot
   私わたしたちは二に度どと彼女かのじょに会あえない運命うんめいだった。↗

   We were never to see her again.

• Synonym宿命しゅくめいWrittenA fate fixed before birth that cannot be escaped, often tinged with resignation or pessimism; 「運命」 is more neutral and can also refer to one's future course.
• Synonym命運めいうんWrittenThe fortunes at stake in a looming crisis of survival or success, said mainly of organizations and nations, as in 「会社の命運」「命運を賭ける」; 「運命」 is broader.
• Synonym天命てんめいWrittenHeaven's decree or will, and by extension one's lifespan, as in 「天命を全うする」; 「運命」 focuses on the course of a life or of affairs.
• Synonym運うんNeutralChance luck, good or bad, as in 「運がいい」; 「運命」 refers to the destined overall course of a life.
• Synonym因縁いんねんNeutralKarmic ties, but also origins or reasons and a pretext for picking a quarrel, as in 「因縁をつける」; 「運命」 has none of these senses.
• Synonym天運てんうんWrittenFortune or luck granted by Heaven; written-style and rare. In everyday speech say 「運命」 for fate and 「運」 for luck.
• Related定めさだめWrittenPolysemous: rules or provisions, but also fate; as fate it sounds archaic and literary, as in 「悲しい定め」. 「運命」 is the modern, general word.
• Related運勢うんせいNeutralA person's luck for a given period, mostly in fortune-telling, as in 「今日の運勢」; 「運命」 concerns life as a whole.
• Related回り合わせまわりあわせNeutralChance or opportunity that happens to come one's way; same meaning as 「巡り合わせ」. 「運命」 stresses a destined course through life.
• Related宿世しゅくせWrittenBuddhist term for one's previous existence or the karmic bonds formed then, with a classical religious flavor; 「運命」 carries no religious sense and is modern.
• Related宿運しゅくうんWrittenWritten word for a fate one is born with and cannot change; rare. Say 「宿命」 or 「運命」 instead in most cases.
• Related巡り合わせめぐりあわせNeutralChance or coincidence that comes about naturally, as in 「巡り合わせが悪い」; 「運命」 stresses a destined course through life.
• Related運気うんきNeutralThe ups and downs of one's luck, used both in fortune-telling and in ordinary talk about luck, as in 「運気が上がる」; 「運命」 is about one's overall life course.
• Related宿縁しゅくえんWrittenBuddhist term for a karmic bond formed in a previous life, as in 「宿縁を感じる」; 「運命」 has no religious coloring and a wider range.
• Related天意てんいWrittenThe will of Heaven or the gods, stressing what no human power can defy; 「運命」 focuses on the course of life that befalls an individual.
• Related命数めいすうWrittenOne's allotted span of life, as in 「命数が尽きる」; written-style. 「運命」 is about the course of a life, not its length.

Use 「運命」 for a destined course in life, as in 「運命の出会い」. Say 「宿命」 for an inescapable fate, 「命運」 for an organization's fortunes at stake, 「運」 for luck, and 「運勢」 for fortune-telling. 「運気」 also works in everyday talk about luck rising or falling; most other words here are written, rare, or religious.

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

1. 人間にんげんの意志いしでは変かえられない、幸福こうふくや災難さいなんを与あたえる力ちから。
2. 将来しょうらいの成り行なりゆき。