jiujitsu

[ joo-jit-soo ]
/ dʒuˈdʒɪt su /

noun

jujitsu.
Also jiu·jut·su [joo-juht-soo, -joot-] /dʒuˈdʒʌt su, -ˈdʒut-/.

Words nearby jiujitsu

jit, jitney, jitter, jitterbug, jittery, jiujitsu, jiulong, jiva, jivaro, jive, jivey

Definition for jiujitsu (2 of 2)

jujitsu

or jiu·jit·su

[ joo-jit-soo ]
/ dʒuˈdʒɪt su /

noun

a method developed in Japan of defending oneself without the use of weapons by using the strength and weight of an adversary to disable him.
the use of an opponent's strengths or one's own weaknesses to accomplish one's goals: That was a kind of intellectual jujitsu, the way she handily won the debate. The town of Vacaville, in a prime example of touristic jujitsu, turned its isolation into an attraction in itself.

verb (used with object)

to turn (a situation) to one's advantage by exploiting one's own weaknesses or another's strengths, as in a social or political relationship: He deftly jujitsued the conversation to make my knowledge of the subject seem pretentious.
Also ju·jut·su, jiu·jut·su [joo-juht-soo, -joo-] /dʒuˈdʒʌt su, -ˈdʒʊ-/.
Compare judo, karate.

Origin of jujitsu

1870–75; < Japanese jūjitsu, earlier jūjutsu, equivalent to jū soft (see judo) + -jut(u) technique < Middle Chinese, equivalent to Chinese shù

Example sentences from the Web for jiujitsu

British Dictionary definitions for jiujitsu (1 of 2)

jiujitsu

jiujutsu

/ (dʒuːˈdʒɪtsuː) /

noun

variant spellings of jujitsu

British Dictionary definitions for jiujitsu (2 of 2)

jujitsu

jujutsu or jiujutsu

/ (dʒuːˈdʒɪtsuː) /

noun

the traditional Japanese system of unarmed self-defence perfected by the samurai See also judo

Word Origin for jujitsu

C19: from Japanese, from jū gentleness + jutsu art