kamikaze

1 of 2

noun

ka·​mi·​ka·​ze ˌkä-mi-ˈkä-zē 

1

: a member of a Japanese air attack corps in World War II assigned to make a suicidal crash on a target (such as a ship)

2

: an airplane containing explosives to be flown in a suicide crash on a target

kamikaze

2 of 2

adjective

1

: of, relating to, or resembling a kamikaze

2

: having or showing reckless disregard for safety or personal welfare

Did you know?

In 1274 and 1281 Kublai Khan, the Mongol emperor of China, sent out great fleets to conquer Japan. Providential storms dispersed the fleets on both occasions and reinforced the Japanese belief that their gods would forever protect them. To the Japanese this salvation was kamikaze, “divine wind.” In World War II Japanese pilots who were willing to give up their lives to help save their country by destroying American ships were the members of a special corps named kamikaze after the storm that had saved Japan seven centuries earlier.

Synonyms of kamikaze

Adjective

• reckless
• daredevil
• daring

Examples of kamikaze in a Sentence

Adjective

a bike messenger who regularly cuts across busy city streets with a kamikaze boldness

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

While SpaceX recently completed the 12th flight test of its Starship, with the upper stage making a picture-perfect splashdown in the Indian Ocean, its first-stage rocket made an unscheduled kamikaze dive into the Gulf of Mexico after its 33 engines failed to reignite for a boost-back burn. —Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026

Financial assets accumulated over the years through oil and gas sales have been cracked open to help fund the effort, and state funds pour into the development of the latest military technologies — such as kamikaze drones. —Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 31 May 2026

Adjective

Financial assets accumulated over the years through oil and gas sales have been cracked open to help fund the effort, and state funds pour into the development of the latest military technologies — such as kamikaze drones. —Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 31 May 2026

Unlike kamikaze drone strikes, which target individual vehicles, mine-laying can affect every vehicle using a route. —David Kirichenko, Forbes.com, 30 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Japanese, literally, divine wind

First Known Use

Noun

1945, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1944, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for kamikaze

• ashkenazi
• paparazzi
• causey
• gauzy
• ghazi
• swazi