*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of aikido

Borrowed from Japanese 合(あい)気(き)道(どう) (aikidō, “aikido”, literally “way of adapting the spirit”), from 合(あい) (ai, “together, unify”) + 気(き) (ki, “spirit; breath”) + 道(どう) (dō, “way”). Doublet of hapkido.

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

A Japanese martial art developed from jujitsu and making use of holds and throws. · A school of the martial art.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from Japanese 合(あい)気(き)道(どう) (aikidō, “aikido”, literally “way of adapting the spirit”), from 合(あい) (ai, “together, unify”) + 気(き) (ki, “spirit; breath”) + 道(どう) (dō, “way”). Doublet of hapkido.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ja",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Japanese"
    },
    {
      "name": "ja-r",
      "args": {
        "1": "合%気%道",
        "2": "あい%き%どう",
        "t": "aikido",
        "lit": "way of adapting the spirit"
      },
      "expansion": "合(あい)気(き)道(どう) (aikidō, “aikido”, literally “way of adapting the spirit”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "ja-r",
      "args": {
        "1": "合",
        "2": "あい",
        "t": "together, unify"
      },
      "expansion": "合(あい) (ai, “together, unify”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "ja-r",
      "args": {
        "1": "気",
        "2": "き",
        "t": "spirit; breath"
      },
      "expansion": "気(き) (ki, “spirit; breath”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "ja-r",
      "args": {
        "1": "道",
        "2": "どう",
        "t": "way"
      },
      "expansion": "道(どう) (dō, “way”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "hapkido"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of hapkido"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "合(あい)気(き)道(どう)",
      "合気道#Japanese"
    ],
    [
      "合(あい)",
      "合#Japanese"
    ],
    [
      "気(き)",
      "気#Japanese"
    ],
    [
      "道(どう)",
      "道#Japanese"
    ],
    [
      "hapkido",
      "hapkido#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A Japanese martial art developed from jujitsu and making use of holds and throws.",
        "A school of the martial art."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "uncountable",
        "countable"
      ],
      "recordId": "16937f71fba7cfacc5f6b0ac1ba1944f0a241b03c5f4530048da9454918a3874",
      "rawRecordSha256": "5e1058685bf09804c28640dec4d7ab8d1948fc81446add349786dde423415e5d",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 541834
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for aikido →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-YWlraWRv