seppuku
UK /sɛˈpuː.kuː/ · US /ˈsɛ.pu(ˌ)ku/ noun
Forms seppukus
- noun A form of ritual suicide by disembowelment using a blade, practiced by Japanese samurai, especially to rid oneself of shame, as a means of protest, or, formerly, as a method of capital punishment.
Synonyms
Etymology
Borrowed from Japanese 切腹 (seppuku), from Middle Chinese 切 (t͡set, “to cut”) + 腹 (pjuwk, “belly”). Compare Cantonese 切腹 (cit³ fuk¹) and Mandarin 切腹 (qiēfù).
Webster’s 1913
- noun Same as Hara-kiri.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “seppuku”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details