Meanings
dharma1
noundharma (countable and uncountable, plural dharmas)
plural dharmas · alternative Dharma
- HinduismcountableuncountableOne's obligation in respect to one's position in society, or the universe; one's duty, societally or cosmically.
- countableuncountableBuddhismThe teachings of the Buddha as one's personal path to enlightenment.
- countableuncountableBuddhismThe teachings of the Buddha as a practice to be promulgated and taught.
- JainismcountableuncountableRule of conduct.
Jain ethical code prescribes two dharmas or rules of conduct.
2016 June 25, Wikipedia contributors, “Five Vows”, in English Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation
Dharma2
noun
- alternativeAlternative form of dharma.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe natural order of the universe; natural law, cosmic order.
Opposite
Origin
- Sanskritधर्म“that which upholds or supports”
- Englishdharma
Learned borrowing from Sanskrit धर्म (dhárma, “that which upholds or supports”). The definitions pertaining to Buddhism are influenced by dhamma, a loan word from Pali. Doublet of dhamma and firm.
More words from Sanskrit
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek εὐσέβειᾰ
- εὐσέβειᾰ (eusébeiă)principle that orders the universe
Arabic دَارْمَا, دَارْمَا
- دَارْمَا (dārmā)principle that orders the universe
- دَارْمَا (dārmā)teachings of the Buddha
Bengali নিরঁজন, ধর্ম
- নিরঁজন (nirõjon)principle that orders the universe
- ধর্ম (dhormo)principle that orders the universe
Chinese Mandarin 法, 法
- 法 (fǎ)principle that orders the universe
- 法 (fǎ)teachings of the Buddha
Czech dharma
- dharmaprinciple that orders the universe
Dutch dharma
- dharmaprinciple that orders the universe
Esperanto darmo
- darmoprinciple that orders the universe
Finnish dharma, dharma
- dharmaprinciple that orders the universe
- dharmateachings of the Buddha
French dharma
- dharmaprinciple that orders the universe
German Dharma
- Dharmaprinciple that orders the universe
Greek ντάρμα
- ντάρμα (ntárma)principle that orders the universe
Hindi धर्म, कर्तव्य
- धर्म (dharm)principle that orders the universe
- कर्तव्य (kartavya)principle that orders the universe
- निरंजन (nirañjan)principle that orders the universe
- धर्म (dharm)teachings of the Buddha
Japanese 法, 法
- 法 (hō)principle that orders the universe
- 法 (hō)teachings of the Buddha
Korean 법, 법
- 법 (beop)principle that orders the universe
- 법 (beop)teachings of the Buddha
Malay darma, darma
- darmaprinciple that orders the universe
- darmateachings of the Buddha
Polish dharma, dharma
- dharmaprinciple that orders the universe
- dharmateachings of the Buddha
Portuguese darma, darma
- darmaprinciple that orders the universe
- darmateachings of the Buddha
Russian дха́рма, дха́рма
- дха́рма (dxárma)principle that orders the universe
- дха́рма (dxárma)teachings of the Buddha
Slovak dharma
- dharmaprinciple that orders the universe
Spanish dharma
- dharmaprinciple that orders the universe
Tamil தருமம்
- தருமம் (tarumam)principle that orders the universe
Thai ธรรม, ธรรมะ
- ธรรม (tam)principle that orders the universe
- ธรรมะ (tam-má)principle that orders the universe
- ธรรม (tam)teachings of the Buddha
Urdu دَھرْم
- دَھرْم (dharm)principle that orders the universe
Vietnamese pháp, pháp
- phápprinciple that orders the universe
- phápteachings of the Buddha
- Phật phápteachings of the Buddha
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with dharma
All rhymes →Cite this entry
APA
dharma. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dharma
MLA
“dharma.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dharma. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “dharma,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dharma.
Source: dharma on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.