samurai

[sam-oo-rahy]

noun

Japanese History.

plural

samurai 

1. a member of the hereditary warrior class in feudal Japan.

2. a retainer of a daimyo.

samurai

/ ˈsæmʊˌraɪ, ˈsæmjʊ- /

noun

1. the Japanese warrior caste that provided the administrative and fighting aristocracy from the 11th to the 19th centuries

2. a member of this aristocracy

Word History and Origins

Origin of samurai¹

1720–30; < Japanese, earlier samurafi to serve, equivalent to sa- prefix + morafi watchfully wait (frequentative of mor- to guard)

Word History and Origins

Origin of samurai¹

C19: from Japanese

Example Sentences

Caesar did a Japanese samurai warrior into whose ersatz-Japanese monologue would slip in the occasional Yiddish word.

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Born into a family of samurai rank, Kurosawa felt that action rather than contemplation reveals the human soul.

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At the time, officers seized six air weapons, a samurai sword, three crossbows and bolts, six knives and a stun gun.

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Considering the Meiji period was when the samurai became obsolete, the potential for social commentary mixed in with high-stakes combat seems pretty high.

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The recently opened IG Arena stands in the outer citadel of Nagoya Castle in Nagoya, Japan, which was built in the early 1600s, when samurai battles raged in the region.

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