kunai

K5U1N1A1I1

noun

A Japanese tool and weapon, possibly derived from the masonry trowel, used as a weapon by ninja or samurai.

OriginJapanese 苦無 →
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Meanings

kunai1

nounkunai (plural kunai)
  1. A Japanese tool and weapon, possibly derived from the masonry trowel, used as a weapon by ninja or samurai.

kunai2

nounkunai (uncountable)
  1. uncountableA species of grass, Imperata cylindrica, native to tropical and subtropical regions of Asia, Australasia, Africa, and southern Europe, and widely introduced to the New World.

Origin

kunai · noun

  1. Japanese苦無
  2. Englishkunai

From Japanese 苦無 (くない, kunai).

More words from Japanese

Full word history & related roots →

kunai · noun

  1. Tolaikunəi“long grass”
  2. Tok Pisinkunai“grass, grassland”
  3. Englishkunai

From Tok Pisin kunai (“grass, grassland”), from Tolai kunəi (“long grass”).

More words from Tok Pisin, Tolai

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Esperanto kunajo
  • kunajotool and weapon
French kunaï
  • kunaïtool and weapon
Hebrew קונאי
  • קונאיtool and weapon
Japanese 苦無
  • 苦無 (kunai)tool and weapon
Korean 구나이
  • 구나이 (gunai)tool and weapon
Persian کونای
  • کونایtool and weapon
Russian кунай
  • кунай (kunaj)tool and weapon
Thai คุนะอิ
  • คุนะอิtool and weapon
Ukrainian кунай
  • кунай (kunaj)tool and weapon

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

nikau
Cite this entry
APA

kunai. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kunai

MLA

“kunai.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kunai. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kunai,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kunai.

Source: kunai on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.