魂（たましい）
JLPT N4 · noun
Pitch accent: atamadaka (head-high) — first mora high, then falls
Meaning: soul / spirit
Example sentences
- 彼は作品に魂を込めた。 — He poured his soul into the work.
- 魂のこもった演奏に感動する。 — I was moved by the soulful performance.
Idioms & proverbs containing “魂”
- 三つ子の魂百まで (みつごのたましいひゃくまで) — a leopard cannot change its spots; the child is father to the man; the soul of a child of three (is the same) at 100
- 一寸の虫にも五分の魂 (いっすんのむしにもごぶのたましい) — tread on a worm and it will turn; even a tiny bug will defend itself; even the weakest and smallest beings have their own wills, so do not make light of them
- 和魂洋才 (わこんようさい) — Japanese spirit with Western learning
- 和魂漢才 (わこんかんさい) — the Japanese spirit imbued with Chinese learning
- 霊魂不滅 (れいこんふめつ) — immortality of the soul
- 士魂商才 (しこんしょうさい) — having a samurai's spirit and a merchant's business sense
Related words
See it used in real works
- Example sentences from Japanese novels & web fiction (Massif)
- Hear “魂” pronounced in real videos (YouGlish)