邪気(じゃき)

じゃき
noun
malice; ill will; evil spirit
1. malice; ill will; bad intent
Ill feeling or harmful intent toward others. Most often heard in the negative 邪気(じゃき)のない, meaning innocent, guileless, and free of any bad intentions.
あの子(こ)には邪気(じゃき)がない。
That child has no malice; she is completely innocent.
邪気(じゃき)のない笑顔(えがお)に心(こころ)が和(なご)んだ。
His guileless smile put me at ease.
彼(かれ)の冗談(じょうだん)には邪気(じゃき)が感(かん)じられず、みんなが笑(わら)った。
There was no malice in his joke, so everyone laughed.
2. evil energy; noxious influence; evil spirit
An unseen harmful force or malignant spirit, as imagined in folk belief. Something to be warded off or driven away for good health and fortune.
邪気(じゃき)を払(はら)う。
To ward off evil.
節分(せつぶん)には豆(まめ)をまいて邪気(じゃき)を追(お)い払(はら)う。
At Setsubun, people scatter beans to drive away evil spirits.
昔(むかし)の人(ひと)は、病気(びょうき)は邪気(じゃき)によって起(お)こると考(かんが)えていた。
People long ago believed that illness was caused by evil forces.

Two related senses: human ill will (sense 1) and unseen evil energy (sense 2). Sense 1 is by far the more common in everyday speech, almost always in 邪気(じゃき)のない.

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • 邪気(じゃき)のない: innocent; guileless
  • 邪気(じゃき)を払(はら)う: to ward off evil
  • 邪気(じゃき)を追(お)い払(はら)う: to drive away evil spirits

SIMILAR WORDS:

  • 悪意(あくい): malice — the plain, everyday word for ill intent
  • 無邪気(むじゃき): innocent; naive — a common derived adjective built on 邪気(じゃき)
general
Added 2026.7.1 9:20
29500/29599_jaki