Buddha

American  

[boo-duh, bood-uh] / ˈbu də, ˈbʊd ə /

noun

1. Also called Gautama.  Also called Butsu.  Also called Goutama Buddha.  Also called Goutama.  Also called Gautama Buddha,.  Prince Siddhāttha or Siddhartha, 566?–c480 b.c., Indian religious leader: founder of Buddhism.

2. any of a series of teachers in Buddhism, of whom Gautama was the last, who bring enlightenment and wisdom.

3. (sometimes lowercase)  a person who has attained full prajna, or enlightenment; Arhat.

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buddha ¹ British  

/ ˈbʊdə /

noun

1. Buddhism (often capital) a person who has achieved a state of perfect enlightenment

2. an image or picture of the Buddha

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Buddha ² British  

/ ˈbʊdə /

noun

1. ?563–483 _bc , a title applied to Gautama Siddhartha, a nobleman and religious teacher of N India, regarded by his followers as the most recent rediscoverer of the path to enlightenment: the founder of Buddhism

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Etymology

Origin of Buddha

First recorded in 1675–85; from Sanskrit: “awakened” ( budh- “awaken, notice, understand” + -ta past participle suffix)

Compare meaning

How does buddha compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Bodhisattva vs. Buddha

Example Sentences

Buddha steps in, imprisoning Monkey under a mountain and forcing him to study sutras for 500 years.

From Los Angeles Times

It’s served tempura style with brown butter, aged Buddha’s hand fruit, fresh walnuts and black truffle.

From The Wall Street Journal

And in Taxila, a place “where intellectual and artistic freedoms met with a merging of multicultural ideas and expressions,” imported Greek art inspired the now-familiar depiction of the Buddha.

From The Wall Street Journal

Since then, the couple have lived in a single-story Ojai home for 33 years, filling it with memories and mementos, including several Buddha statues from their travels.

From Los Angeles Times

"Are the relics of the Buddha a commodity that can be treated like a work of art to be sold on the market?"

From BBC