sensei

S1E1N1S1E1I1
/ˈsɛnseɪ/

noun

A martial arts instructor; especially one for a Japanese martial art.

Similar
sifushifudojochokanchokaicho
OriginHokkien 先生 →
Less commonScrabble 6
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Meanings

nounsensei (plural sensei or senseis)

plural senseis

  1. A martial arts instructor; especially one for a Japanese martial art.

    Synonyms: sifu, shifu, dojocho, kancho, kaicho

  2. A Japanese (language) teacher (sometimes used as a suffix attached to the name of a teacher, principally in translations from Japanese).
  3. A teacher, guide or mentor, in the context of Japan.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA martial arts instructor; especially one for a Japanese martial art.

Similar
sifushifudojochokanchokaicho
Also see
dojochosifu

Origin

  1. Hokkien先生
  2. Englishsensei

Borrowed from Japanese 先生(せんせい) (sensei, “teacher; elder”), from Middle Chinese 先生 (MC sen sraeng, “master, elder”), from 先 (MC sen, “earlier, first”) + 生 (MC sraeng, “born”). Compare modern Mandarin 先生 (xiānshēng, “Mr.”). Doublet of sinseh, from Hokkien 先生 (sin-seⁿ).

More words from Hokkien

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic مُدَرِّب
  • مُدَرِّب (mudarrib)martial arts instructor
Chinese Cantonese 師傅 /师傅
  • 師傅 /师傅 (si¹ fu⁶, si¹ fu²)martial arts instructor
Chinese Mandarin 師傅 /师傅
  • 師傅 /师傅 (shīfu, shīfù)martial arts instructor
Finnish mestari
  • mestarimartial arts instructor
French sensei, sensei
  • senseimartial arts instructor
  • senseiJapanese language teacher
German Sensei, Sensei
  • Senseimartial arts instructor
  • SenseiJapanese language teacher
Greek σενσέι
  • σενσέι (senséi)martial arts instructor
Indonesian sensei, sensei
  • senseimartial arts instructor
  • senseiJapanese language teacher
Japanese 先生, 先生
  • 先生 (sensei)martial arts instructor
  • 先生 (sensei)Japanese language teacher
  • 先生 (sensei)teacher in the context of Japan
Korean 선생, 선생님
  • 선생 (seonsaeng)martial arts instructor
  • 선생님 (seonsaengnim)martial arts instructor
  • 센세이 (sensei)teacher in the context of Japan
Persian سنسی, سنسی
  • سنسی (sensey)martial arts instructor
  • سنسی (sensey)Japanese language teacher
Portuguese sensei, sensei
  • senseimartial arts instructor
  • senseiJapanese language teacher
Russian сэнсэ́й, ма́стер
  • сэнсэ́й (sɛnsɛ́j)martial arts instructor
  • ма́стер (máster)martial arts instructor
  • сенсе́й (senséj)martial arts instructor
  • сэнсэ́й (sɛnsɛ́j)Japanese language teacher
Spanish sensei, senséi
  • senseimartial arts instructor
  • senséimartial arts instructor

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with sensei

Rioplatense
All rhymes →

Anagrams

NessieEssienNeisseSeisenSineseNeises
Cite this entry
APA

sensei. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sensei

MLA

“sensei.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sensei. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sensei,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sensei.

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