Numbers in Japanese
| 1 |
ichi |
| 2 |
ni |
| 3 |
san |
| 4 |
shi / yon |
| 5 |
go |
| 6 |
roku |
| 7 |
shichi / nana |
| 8 |
hachi |
| 9 |
kyu / ku |
| 10 |
juu |
Attacks
Strikes (uchi / tsuki)
- shomen uchi — vertical strike to the head
- yokomen uchi — diagonal strike to the head or neck
- tsuki — punch
- geri / keri — kick
- jōdan — upper level (head / neck)
- chūdan — middle level (torso / chest / abdomen)
- gedan — lower level (groin / legs)
Grabs (tori / dori)
- katate dori — wrist grab
- ryōte dori — both hands grab both wrists
- morote dori — both hands grab one wrist
- kata tori — shoulder grab
- mune dori — grab of the chest or lapel
- ushiro ryōte dori — grab both wrists from behind
- ushiro eri dori — grab the collar from behind
- ushiro kubi shime — choke or strangle from behind
Techniques
- irimi nage — entering throw
- kote gaeshi — wrist turn-out
- koshi nage — hip throw
- nage waza — throwing techniques
- kaeshi waza — counter techniques
- katame waza — pinning techniques
- uchi waza — striking techniques
- sumi otoshi — corner throw (back corner)
- kaiten otoshi — corner throw (above the shoulder)
- maki otoshi — corner throw (front corner)
Movements & Positions
- hanmi — stance
- ai hanmi — same foot forward
- gyaku hanmi — opposite foot forward (mirror image stance)
- hidari hanmi — left foot forward
- migi hanmi — right foot forward
- maai — distance
- tai sabaki — body movement
- irimi — entering movement
- tenkan — pivot
- suwari waza — sitting techniques
Body Parts
- men — head
- kubi — neck
- kata — shoulder
- koshi — hips
- ashi — leg or foot
- mune — chest
- te — hand
- kote / kubite — wrist
- hiji — elbow
Dojo & Etiquette
- dojo — martial arts school
- gi — uniform
- hakama — formal pleated trousers worn over the gi
- kamiza / shomen — the center of the dojo, typically marked by a scroll or a photograph of O-sensei
- rei — bow
- seiza — formal kneeling posture
- shikko — knee walking
People & Roles
- sensei — teacher / instructor
- sempai — senior student
- kohai — junior student
- nage / tori — the defender
- uke — the attacker
- O-sensei / kaiso-sensei — honorific titles of Morihei Ueshiba
- yudansha — black belt rank holder
- kyudansha — student below black belt level
Useful Phrases
- hai — yes
- iie — no
- dōmo — thank you (informal)
- arigatō — thank you (casual)
- arigatō gozaimasu — thank you (formal, used during practice)
- arigatō gozaimashita — thank you (formal, said after practice)
- onegai shimasu — please (used before practice; roughly, “please train with me”)
- yame — stop
- hajime — begin / start
- tatte — stand up
- suwatte — sit down
- kudasai — please (polite request; e.g., suwatte kudasai = “please sit down”)
- otsukaresama deshita — said at the end of practice; roughly, “thank you for your hard work” or “good job today”