Word of the Day

: January 20, 2011

ninja

noun NIN-juh

What It Means

: a person trained in ancient Japanese martial arts and employed especially for espionage and assassinations

ninja in Context

Ninjas are thought to be able to run faster than ordinary people, scale impossible walls, and endure the severest of pain.

"Simon Baldry has practiced ninjutsu on and off for 15 years and, despite his brown belt, he still wouldn't call himself a ninja. That is an honour earned after many years of experience, he says humbly." -- From an article by Hayley Hannan in The Auklander, December 3, 2010

Did You Know?

Ninjas may seem mysterious, but the origin of their name is not. The word "ninja" derives from the Japanese characters "nin" and "ja." "Nin" initially meant "persevere," but over time it developed the extended meanings "conceal" and "move stealthily." In Japanese, "ja" is the combining form of "sha," meaning "person." Ninjas originated in the mountains of Japan over 800 years ago as practitioners of ninjutsu, a martial art sometimes called "the art of stealth" or "the art of invisibility." They often served as military spies and were trained in disguise, concealment, geography, meteorology, medicine, and also other martial arts. Popular legends still associate them with espionage and assassinations, but modern ninjas are most likely to study ninjutsu to improve their physical fitness and self-defense skills.