魔法陣(まほうじん)

まほうじん
noun
magic circle; magic square
1. magic circle; summoning circle
A circular pattern or diagram used in fantasy and occult contexts for casting spells, summoning creatures, or performing rituals. Ubiquitous in Japanese anime, manga, and games.
魔法陣(まほうじん)が光(ひか)り始(はじ)めた。
The magic circle began to glow.
魔法使(まほうつか)いが地面(じめん)に魔法陣(まほうじん)を描(えが)いた。
The wizard drew a magic circle on the ground.
このゲームでは、魔法陣(まほうじん)を使(つか)ってモンスターを召喚(しょうかん)できる。
In this game, you can summon monsters using a magic circle.
2. magic square (mathematics)
A grid of numbers arranged so that the sum of each row, column, and diagonal is the same.
3x3の魔法陣(まほうじん)を作(つく)ってみよう。
Let's try making a 3x3 magic square.
魔法陣(まほうじん)はどの行(ぎょう)も列(れつ)も対角線(たいかくせん)も同(おな)じ和(わ)になる。
In a magic square, every row, column, and diagonal has the same sum.
算数(さんすう)の授業(じゅぎょう)で魔法陣(まほうじん)の問題(もんだい)が出(で)た。
A magic square problem came up in math class.

Composed of 魔法(まほう) (magic) + 陣(じん) (formation, array). The word has two distinct uses: the fantasy/occult sense (magic circle) is far more common in everyday Japanese, appearing constantly in anime, manga, light novels, and video games. The mathematical sense (magic square) appears in education contexts.

Common collocations

Similar words

  • 魔方陣(まほうじん): alternate kanji spelling, specifically for the mathematical magic square
  • 結界(けっかい): barrier -- a magical boundary for protection rather than summoning
  • 呪文(じゅもん): incantation, spell -- spoken magic rather than drawn

Related Words

Compare: 結界(けっかい) (barrier -- a magical boundary…)
Compare: 呪文(じゅもん) (incantation, spell -- spoken magic…)
general
Added 2026.4.29 20:17 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
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