judo

noun

ju·​do ˈjü-(ˌ)dō 

: a sport developed from jujitsu that emphasizes the use of quick movement and leverage to throw an opponent

judoist

ˈjü-ˌdō-ist 

noun

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Judo is a martial art that emphasizes the use of quick movement and leverage to throw an opponent. Its techniques are generally intended to turn an opponent's force to one's own advantage rather than to oppose it directly. The opponent must be thrown cleanly, pinned, or mastered through the application of pressure to arm joints or the neck. Judo evolved out of the older martial art jujitsu in late-19th-century Japan, but it is now practiced primarily as sport. It became an Olympic sport for men in 1964; women's judo was added in 1992.

Examples of judo in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In judo, meanwhile, the losers of the quarterfinals and semifinals go into a new bracket, competing until there are two athletes left, again awarding bronze medals to those athletes. —NBC News, 9 Aug. 2024

Teddy Riner, a judo standout, had seen fans scrambling for tickets to watch his matches at Champ-de-Mars. —David Wharton, Los Angeles Times, 7 Aug. 2024

Igor is the son of Arkady Rotenberg, the Putin judo buddy from St. Petersburg, a sanctioned billionaire who is worth $4 billion and is on Forbes’ billionaire list as #781. —Daniel Markind, Forbes, 7 Oct. 2024

Teddy Riner, the French judo god, and one of the most popular athletes in the country, won a third career gold at age 35, bringing some fans to tears. —Brendan Quinn, The Athletic, 11 Aug. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Japanese jūdō, from jū weakness, gentleness + dō art

First Known Use

1889, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

judo

noun

ju·​do ˈjüd-ō 

plural judos

: a sport developed from jujitsu in which opponents attempt to throw each other by using quick movements and leverage