Translation and Meaning of: 戦 - ikusa
The Japanese word 戦 (いくさ, ikusa) carries immense historical and cultural weight, representing not only the concept of "war" or "battle" but also the essence of conflicts that shaped Japan. If you're here, you likely want to understand more than just the translation—you want to discover its origin, how the kanji was created, and even tips for memorizing it. In this article, we will explore everything from the etymology to interesting facts about its use in daily Japanese, including useful phrases for those studying with methods like Anki. And if you've ever wondered why this ideogram seems so complex, the answer lies in its millennia-old history.
In addition to its literal meaning, 戦 appears in popular expressions, movie titles, and even in mangas, showing how language reflects samurai culture. We'll also uncover why some people confuse its use with similar and how to avoid these mistakes. Get ready for a journey that goes far beyond the dictionary!
The origin and etymology of 戦
The kanji 戦 is composed of two main radicals: 戈 (hoko), which represents a halberd or weapon of war, and 単 (tan), an ancient character associated with "simplicity" or "unique." Together, they convey the idea of a singular, intense conflict — a decisive battle. Interestingly, in ancient China, this ideogram was also used to describe ritualistic combats, not just bloody wars.
The pronunciation ikusa comes from archaic Japanese, where "iku" meant "to go" and "sa" indicated action. Literally, it was "the act of going to confrontation." Over time, the term gained broader nuances, encoming everything from personal duels to military campaigns. It is no surprise that the kanji appears in classics like "The Book of Five Rings" by Miyamoto Musashi, where war is treated as both art and strategy.
The pictogram and its evolution
Looking at the kanji 戦, it is possible to visualize the figure of a warrior holding a spear — the upper diagonal stroke represents the movement of the weapon, while the lower elements suggest a shield or defensive posture. This pictographic representation dates back to inscriptions on oracle bones from the Shang dynasty (1600–1046 BC), where similar symbols already denoted conflict.
In modern writing, the simplified version retains this essence but with more fluid strokes. An interesting detail: the radical 戈 appears in other kanjis related to violence, such as 戯 (brutal game) and 戴 (to bear a burden). This is not a coincidence; ancient Chinese believed that the drawing of the weapon carried aggressive energy, hence its presence in characters of tension.
Contemporary use and curiosities
In present-day Japan, 戦 is more common in formal or historical contexts — movie announcements like "Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi" (Spirited Away) use the term metaphorically to describe the protagonist's "battle" against spirits. In corporations, expressions like shijō senryaku (market strategy) borrow the ideogram to discuss competition, showing how military language permeates even the corporate world.
A tip for memorization: associate the stroke that looks like a sword on top of the kanji with the moment when a samurai unsheathes his katana. This mental image helps to solidify not only the writing but the spirit of the word. And be careful with puns — in some regional dialects, "ikusa" sounds similar to "ikusā" (let's go), which has already caused some funny confusion in bars in Osaka!
Vocabulary
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Synonyms and similar words
- 戦争 (Sensō) - War
- 闘い (Tatakai) - Fight, battle
- 戦い (Tatakau) - Conflict, combat (synonym of 闘い)
- 戦闘 (Sentō) - Fight, action of combat
- 戦争する (Sensō suru) - Make war
- 戦争状態 (Sensō jōtai) - State of war
- 戦争勃発 (Sensō boppa) - Emerge from war
- 戦争中 (Sensō chū) - During the war
- 戦争終結 (Sensō shūketsu) - End of the war
- 戦争犠牲者 (Sensō giseisha) - Victims of war
- 戦争責任 (Sensō sekinin) - Responsibility for the war
- 戦争犯罪 (Sensō hanzai) - War crimes
- 戦争法 (Sensō hō) - Law of war
- 戦争博物館 (Sensō hakubutsukan) - War Museum
- 戦争記念日 (Sensō kinenbi) - Anniversary of the war
- 戦争映画 (Sensō eiga) - War movie
- 戦争小説 (Sensō shōsetsu) - War romance
- 戦争体験 (Sensō taiken) - War experience
- 戦争賠償 (Sensō baishō) - War compensation
- 戦争被害 (Sensō higai) - War damages
- 戦争復興 (Sensō fukkō) - Post-war reconstruction
- 戦争遺跡 (Sensō iseki) - War ruins
- 戦争記録 (Sensō kiroku) - War record
- 戦争慰安婦 (Sensō ianfu) - Comfort women during the war
Related words
Romaji: ikusa
Kana: いくさ
Type: noun
L: jlpt-n1
Translation / Meaning: war; battle; campaign; fight
Meaning in English: war;battle;campaign;fight
Definition: Fight or compete with enemies.
Quick Access
- Vocabulary
- Writing
- Sentences
How to Write in Japanese - (戦) ikusa
See below a step-by-step guide on how to write the word by hand in Japanese. (戦) ikusa:
Example Sentences - (戦) ikusa
See below some example sentences:
Heiki wa sensou wo hikio kosu kanousei ga aru
Weapons have the potential to cause war.
- 兵器 - weapon
- は - Topic particle
- 戦争 - war
- を - direct object particle
- 引き起こす - cause
- 可能性 - possibility
- が - subject particle
- ある - exist
Kono sakusen wa seikō suru to shinjiteimasu
I believe this strategy will succeed.
- この - demonstrative pronoun that means "this" or "this here"
- 作戦 - noun meaning "strategy" or "plan of action"
- は - grammatical particle that indicates the topic of the sentence
- 成功する - verb meaning "to succeed" or "to be successful"
- と - grammatical particle indicating a direct quotation
- 信じています - compound verb meaning "to believe" or "to have faith"
Samurai wa yuukan de chuujitsu na senshi desu
Samurai is a brave and faithful warrior.
- 侍 - samurai
- は - partícula que indica o tópico da frase
- 勇敢 - brave
- で - conjunção que significa "e" ou "com"
- 忠実 - loyal
- な - forma atributiva da cópula "ser"
- 戦士 - warrior
- です - to be" copula
Heitai wa yuukan ni tatakaimashita
The soldiers fought bravely.
- 兵隊 (heitai) - soldiers
- は (wa) - Topic particle
- 勇敢に (yuukan ni) - bravely
- 戦いました (tatakaimashita) - fought
Yuukan ni chousen shiyou!
Let's challenge boldly!
Let's bravely challenges!
- 勇敢 (yūkan) - brave
- に (ni) - particle that indicates the target or the manner of an action
- 挑戦 (chōsen) - Challenge
- しよう (shiyou) - volitive form of the verb "to do", indicating a suggestion or invitation to do something
- ！ (ponto de exclamação) - punctuation mark used to express excitement or emphasis
Yuuki wo motte chousen shiyou
Let's challenge with courage.
- 勇気 (yūki) - courage
- を (wo) - object particle
- 持って (motte) - carregando/segurando
- 挑戦 (chōsen) - Challenge
- しよう (shiyou) - let's do/try
Kare wa teki o shirizokeru tame ni hisshi ni tatakatta
He struggled desperately to fend off the enemy.
He struggled desperately to reject the enemy.
- 彼 (kare) - He
- は (wa) - Topic particle
- 敵 (teki) - enemy
- を (wo) - Direct object particle
- 退ける (shirizokeru) - Repel
- ために (tameni) - For
- 必死に (hisshi ni) - Desperately
- 戦った (tatakatta) - Struggled
Kare wa teki o utsu tame ni tatakai ni deta
He went out to fight to defeat the enemy.
He went to fight to defeat the enemy.
- 彼 - The Japanese pronoun that means "he" is 彼 (かれ, kare).
- は - Japanese particle that indicates the topic of the sentence
- 敵 - Japanese noun that means "enemy"
- を - Japanese particle that indicates the direct object of the sentence
- 討つ - Japanese verb meaning "defeat"
- ために - Japanese expression that means "for"
- 戦い - Japanese noun meaning "battle"
- に - Japanese particle that indicates the place where the action takes place
- 出た - Japanese verb meaning "to leave"
Kanojo wa teki o horobosu tame ni tatakatta
She fought to destroy the enemy.
- 彼女 - she
- は - Topic particle
- 敵 - enemy
- を - direct object particle
- 滅ぼす - destroy, annihilate
- ために - in order to
- 戦った - fought (past tense of the verb 戦う - tatakau)
Wareware no senryoku wa kyōryoku desu
Our strength is mighty.
- 我々の戦力 - "Our combat force"
- は - Topic particle
- 強力 - "Powerful"
- です - polite way of "to be"
Other Words of this Type: noun
See other words from our dictionary that are also: noun