hara-kiri
English edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from Japanese 腹切り (harakiri), ultimately from 腹 (hara, “belly”) + 切る (kiru, “to cut”).
Noun edit
- Ceremonial suicide by disembowelment, as by slicing open the abdomen with a dagger or knife: formerly practised in Japan by the samurai when disgraced or sentenced to death.
- 1899, William George Aston, A History of Japanese Literature, page 231:
- On the downfall of his power in 1867 he was urged by one of his Council to save the honour of his family by a voluntary suicide. He flatly refused to do so and left the room, whereupon his faithful adviser retired to another part of the castle and solemnly performed the hara-kiri.
- Suicide or any suicidal action.
- 2020 January 12, Drachinifel, 47:56 from the start, in The Drydock - Episode 076[1], archived from the original on 26 September 2022:
- ...the report that was issued at the time officially blamed a disgruntled crewman who had been accused of theft and may have decided to do the ultimate hara-kiri, but quite how you prove that I don't know...
- (by extension, figuratively) An act against one's own interests.
- 1982–1983, Paul Johnson, Modern Times: The World from the Twenties to the Eighties,[2] revised and printed as […] to the Nineties, HarperCollins (2001), →ISBN, page 393:
- Regarded logically, therefore, Japan’s decision to go to war made no sense. It was hara-kiri.
- 1987, The Economist[3], volume 304, numbers 7505-7513, page 1:
- They are haunted by the spectre of the 1984 election, when Mr Walter Mondale committed hara-kiri by acknowledging the need to raise taxes if America were to get its economy straight.
- 2008 April 5, Anurag Prasad, “Virgin Territory”, in Outlook Business, volume 3, number 7, page 50:
- But with GSM players lobbying hard for more spectrum, taking MVNOs on board now would be hara-kiri.
- 1982–1983, Paul Johnson, Modern Times: The World from the Twenties to the Eighties,[2] revised and printed as […] to the Nineties, HarperCollins (2001), →ISBN, page 393:
Synonyms edit
- (ceremonial suicide by ripping open the abdomen): seppuku
Translations edit
ceremonial suicide by ripping open the abdomen
|
suicide
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See also edit
Anagrams edit
Dutch edit
Noun edit
hara-kiri m (plural hara-kiri's)
French edit
Alternative forms edit
Pronunciation edit
- (aspirated h) IPA(key): /a.ʁa.ki.ʁi/
- Rhymes: -i
- Homophones: harakiri, harakiris, hara-kiris
Noun edit
hara-kiri m (plural hara-kiris)
- hara-kiri (suicide by ripping open the stomach)
See also edit
Further reading edit
- “hara-kiri”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Portuguese edit
Pronunciation edit
- Hyphenation: ha‧ra‧ki‧ri
Noun edit
hara-kiri m (plural hara-kiris)
- Alternative spelling of haraquiri
Tagalog edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from Japanese 腹切り (harakiri).
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
hara-kiri (Baybayin spelling ᜑᜇᜃᜒᜇᜒ)
Further reading edit
- “hara-kiri” at KWF Diksiyonaryo ng Wikang Filipino[4], Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino, 2021
- “hara-kiri”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018