Standard Lemma guide

yakuza

noun · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈjækuːzə/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /jəˈkuːzə/
  • General-American: /ˈjækuzə/
  • General-American: /ˈjɑː-/
  • Australian: /ˈjaːkʉːzə/
  • Australian: /jəˈkʉːzə/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ækuːzə
  • rhymes with -uːzə

1

noun

Meaning 1

A Japanese organized crime gang.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A member of that Japanese organized crime gang.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

organized crime in Japan; an alliance of criminal organizations and illegal enterprises

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: organized crime, gangland, gangdom

4

noun

Meaning 4

a Japanese gangster

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: gangster, mobster

History

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese やくざ (yakuza). See there for more details.

Across languages

Translations

29 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: يَاكُوزَا (yakūzā) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Chinese Mandarin: 極道 /极道 (jídào) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Chinese Mandarin: 日本黑道 (Rìběn hēidào) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Finnish: yakuza — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Japanese: やくざ (yakuza) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Japanese: ヤクザ (yakuza) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Japanese: 極道 (gokudō) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Korean: 야쿠자 (yakuja) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Malay: yakuza — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Marathi: याकुजा (yākujā) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Mongolian: якуза (jakuza) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Polish: yakuza — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Polish: jakuza — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Russian: яку́дза (jakúdza) — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Slovene: jakuza — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Spanish: yakuza — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Spanish: yakuzas — Japanese organized crime gang
  • Arabic: يَاكُوزَا (yakūzā) — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Chinese Mandarin: 極道 /极道 (jídào) — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Chinese Mandarin: 如龍 /如龙 (rúlóng) — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Finnish: yakuza — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Japanese: やくざ (yakuza) — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Japanese: ヤクザ (yakuza) — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Korean: 야쿠자 (yakuja) — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Malay: yakuza — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Marathi: याकुजा (yākujā) — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Polish: yakuza — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Polish: jakuza — member of a Japanese organized crime gang
  • Russian: яку́дза (jakúdza) — member of a Japanese organized crime gang