manga

American  

[mahng-guh, mang-] / ˈmɑŋ gə, ˈmæŋ- /

noun

• mangas
  plural

1. a Japanese graphic novel, typically intended for adults, characterized by highly stylized art.

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manga British  

/ ˈmæŋɡə /

noun

1. 1. a type of Japanese comic book with an adult theme

   2. ( as modifier )

      manga videos

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• mangas
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of manga

1985–90; < Japanese: literally, cartoon, comic strip

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Compare meaning

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

• manga vs. anime

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Explanation

Manga is a Japanese style of comic books and graphic novels. Astro Boy and Dragon Ball are examples of popular manga. Manga is sold around the world and translated into dozens of languages, but it's mainly published in Japan, where it's popular with all ages of readers. In Japanese, manga literally translates to "involuntary pictures," but the word is used to describe both comics and cartooning. Western fans of manga recognize its distinctive style, with impressionistic backgrounds and big-eyed characters. Most manga is read from right to left, like Japanese writing.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

manga mangas

Many of the galleries are devoted to the type of work most often seen in “special exhibits” — children’s books, manga and the sci-fi/fantasy works of Frazetta.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

French President Emmanuel Macron hailed the move as on a scale not seen "since Disneyland Paris", and added "you know my interest for manga".

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026

The journey from manga inspiration to publication in an international scientific journal shows that serious research can also be creative, memorable, and accessible.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026

But relief is coming for the upwards of 250,000 people from all over the world who attend the WCS every year to embody manga, animation or video game characters.

From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026

I’d spend lunch periods reading manga in the bathroom.

From "Leah on the Offbeat" by Becky Albertalli

The same would later be true with automobiles, gadgetry and — for fans of “Demon Slayer,” “One Piece” and other mangas — cartoons, to name just those few.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 7, 2021

Japan discovered its first element, nihonium, No. 113, in 2004, and Chapman reports that Japanese children read mangas dramatizing the work of the country’s top nuclear physicist, Kosuke Morita.

From The New Yorker ● Dec. 27, 2019

In them were several queer kinds of harpoons, which were to be used in capturing the mangas.

From Lost in the Jungle Narrated for Young People by Paul B. (Paul Belloni) Du Chaillu

We have ordered mangas to wear in our intended journey, which is now nearly decided on—nothing tolerable to be had under seventy or eighty dollars.

From Life in Mexico by Madame (Frances Erskine Inglis) Calderón de la Barca

We see mangas and tilmas, and men wearing the sandal, as in Eastern lands.

From The Scalp Hunters by F.A. Stewart

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