karate

Everyday

1. A Japanese martial art and sport in which people fight using hands, feet, elbows and knees, with strikes, kicks and blocks. tree →
2. The skills and training of this sport, with coloured belts showing levels. tree →

In the lessons

Many children do karate after school; it teaches discipline, fitness, respect and self-defence. Belts go from white up to black. In stories, a karate expert can be a hero or a comic show-off. Safety: karate is practised with rules, a teacher and control; you should never use moves to hurt people for fun. Phrases: «do karate», «a karate class», «karate chop», «karate kid», «black belt in karate».

Examples

• I do karate on Tuesdays and Thursdays. tree →
• She got her yellow belt in karate. tree →
• Our karate teacher says respect comes first. tree →
• He pretended to do a karate chop on the cardboard box. tree →
• Karate came from Okinawa in Japan. tree →
• You bow when you enter the karate hall. tree →
• Karate is for self-defence, not for starting fights. tree →

Note

Uncountable: «do karate», not «play karate» and not «a karate». Pronounced ka-RAH-tee in English. The person is a «karateka» (rare) or just «someone who does karate». Not the same as judo (throws and holds) or taekwondo (a Korean martial art with many kicks).