manga

noun

man·​ga ˈmäŋ-gə 

plural manga also mangas

: Japanese comic books and graphic novels considered collectively as a genre

The characters' faces beam the big-eyed, manically jolly winsomeness that in anime and manga signals contentment.

—Peter Schjeldahl

also : an individual comic book or graphic novel of the manga genre

This black-and-white manga is based on the Japanese animated TV series of the same name …

—Library Journal

Examples of manga in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That’s helped largely by its massive opening in Japan, where Tatsuki Fujimoto’s manga-to-Crunchyroll-to-cinema adaptation broke into the country’s top 100 highest-grossing movies of all time. —Brenton Blanchet, PEOPLE, 7 Nov. 2025

In the original manga, the character appears as an okama, a Japanese umbrella term that refers to gender nonconforming men, trans women and crossdressers. —Mathew Rodriguez, Them., 5 Nov. 2025

Netflix’s live-action adaptation of One Piece is based on Japan’s highest-selling manga series of all time by Eiichiro Oda. —James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 5 Nov. 2025

Original manga creator Oda executive produces alongside Marty Adelstein and Becky Clements through Tomorrow Studios, as well as Tetsu Fujimura, Chris Symes, Christoph Schrewe and Steven Maeda. —Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 5 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Japanese, comic, cartoon, from man- involuntary, aimless + -ga picture

First Known Use

circa 1951, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for manga

• ganga
• pampanga

Kids Definition

manga

noun

man·​ga ˈmäŋ-gə 

: a Japanese comic book or graphic novel