kami

British

/ ˈkɑːmɪ /

noun

a divine being or spiritual force in Shinto

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of kami

C18: from Japanese: god, lord

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

As kami expert Matt Alt told me, "Only a place with countless shrines, each venerating their own locations and local deities, could have dreamed up something like 'Spirited Away.'"

From Salon • Oct. 10, 2022

Confusion reigns, as in a debate over the meaning of the Japanese word kami, which Aki notes can mean “hair,” “god” or “paper.”

From Washington Post • Apr. 16, 2015

Shinto worshipers believed in kami, divine spirits that dwelled in nature.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2012

Any unusual or especially beautiful tree, rock, waterfall, or mountain was considered the home of a kami.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2012

Thanks to the kami and the Buddhas the heart of this Tarōbei is clean."—"And of this Jimbei.

From Bakemono Yashiki (The Haunted House), Retold from the Japanese Originals Tales of the Tokugawa, Volume 2 by De Benneville, James S. (James Seguin)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023