What does "ninja" mean?
A person trained in ninjutsu, especially (historical) one used for espionage, assassination, and other tasks requiring stealth during Japan's shogunate period.
Ninja
adj, noun, verb, slang
adj, noun, verb, slang ·2 syllables ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A person trained in ninjutsu, especially (historical) one used for espionage, assassination, and other tasks requiring stealth during Japan's shogunate period.
- Grammar: ninja is listed as adj, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: spy, ace, assassin, covert.
- Useful contrasts: amateur, beginner, blatant.
- Usage evidence: Kamui no Ken was a sort of samurai/ninja story set during the transition of the fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the re-establishment of Japan under the Emperor Meiji in 1868.
How to use "ninja"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "ninja" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "ninja" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "ninja" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "ninja" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "ninja" is acting as adj, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "spy" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "ninja", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A person trained in ninjutsu, especially (historical) one used for espionage, assassination, and other tasks requiring stealth during Japan's shogunate period.
"He used to work in the Japanese agency as a ninja."
- 2 An anti-government Bakongo rebel, active in Pool Department, Republic of the Congo (Congo-Brazzaville).
"To punish a population seen as Ninja sympathisers, the government last year effectively sealed off the entire region and barred all aid, turning Pool into a blank space on the humanitarian map."
- 3 a class of 14th century Japanese who were trained in martial arts and were hired for espionage and assassinations wordnet
- 4 A person considered similarly skillful to the historical ninja, especially in covert or stealthy operation. figuratively
"For months the Japanese spoke of national-security adviser Henry Kissinger as a ninja—the magician of Japanese legends who performs supernatural acts and practices sorcery."
- 5 a member of the ninja who were trained in martial arts and hired for espionage or sabotage or assassinations; a person skilled in ninjutsu wordnet
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 A person considered similarly skillful to the historical ninja, especially in covert or stealthy operation.; A notional draconian arm of a corporation (originally Nintendo), tasked with dealing with individuals that infringe on its rights or do not comply with its regulations. figuratively, in-plural, slang
"I had TOTK running on my pc 2 weeks before it released on the switch and I'm still here. They can send the ninjas, I'm waiting."
- 7 A person considered to look like the historical ninja in some way, including (historical slang) an amateur private miner in Mongolia. figuratively
"He immediately suspected they were ninjas because, he said, they were dressed in black and wore masks, trademarks of the mysterious assassins who have been sowing terror across East Java in recent months."
- 8 Synonym of nigga as a friendly term of address. euphemistic
"What's up, ninjas?"
- 9 Synonym of nigga as a friendly term of address.; Synonym of man as a friendly term of address. euphemistic
"What up, my ninja!"
- 10 nigger. derogatory, ethnic, euphemistic, offensive, slur, vulgar
Verb
- 1 To act or move like a ninja, particularly with regard to a combination of speed, power, and stealth. ambitransitive
"I leapt up, ninja'd over to Gav's bed and wheeched the duvet off."
- 2 to beat someone to a post; to make the same reply just before the other party finishes typing, making their response redundant. Internet
"When I hit post, I saw that Blue Emu had ninja'd me, so I just deleted my reply."
- 3 To claim an item through abuse of game mechanics. Internet, slang
"That damn warrior ninja'd an epic-quality wand even though he can't even use it!"
Adjective
- 1 Of or related to ninjas in their various senses. not-comparable
"The July 1966 issue had a cartoon concerning a Ninja dojo."
- 2 Initialism of no income, no job or assets, describing credit characteristics of a borrower, usually of a residential mortgage. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism, not-comparable
Antonyms
Example
"Kamui no Ken was a sort of samurai/ninja story set during the transition of the fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the re-establishment of Japan under the Emperor Meiji in 1868."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "ninja"?
Common synonyms include: spy, ace, assassin, covert, covert operative, discreet.
How do you use "ninja" in a sentence?
Kamui no Ken was a sort of samurai/ninja story set during the transition of the fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the re-establishment of Japan under the Emperor Meiji in 1868.
Etymology
Etymology 1
A romanized borrowing of Japanese 忍者 (ninja), popularized within Japanese by manga after World War II and in English by Eric Van Lustbader's 1980 novel The Ninja and the 1981 movie Enter the Ninja, of uncertain derivation but with an underlying sense of secret or hidden person. The “Mongolian miner” sense arose from the supposed resemblance of the bowls used to wash ore with mercury to the shells of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The Juggalo slang sense arose via influence from AAVE nigga.
Etymology 2
From ninja.