Sections
Senshi (戦士): what it means in anime
戦士
せんし · senshi · soldier; combatant; warrior Not on JLPT lists
Senshi means "warrior" or "fighter". It is the word in セーラー戦士 (Sailor Guardians) and the standard RPG class name for a melee fighter, which is why Frieren's Eisen and Tensura's party members are 戦士.
Where you hear it 2 of 42 series
Lines from the Japanese subtitles of episodes 1–3 of each show. A translation is shown only when it clearly matches the line; counts are subtitle lines containing the word.
-
Reincarnated as a Slime · 7 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 2
その名持ちのゴブリンの戦士はSo did that Goblin warrior fight them knowing he couldn't win?
-
Vinland Saga · 21 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 1
ほらほら これ証拠 真の戦士の
Usage and nuance
It is more heroic than 兵士 (heishi, soldier), which is a rank, and more generic than 武士 (bushi, samurai). A 戦士 fights by vocation; a 兵士 fights because the army told them to.
Vinland Saga's Vikings are 戦士 in the proud sense. Sailor Moon made 戦士 a word every Japanese child knows, attached to magical girls rather than men.
The components 戦 (battle) and 士 (person of a profession) also give 騎士 (kishi, knight) and 魔法使い (mahoutsukai, mage), the other classic party members.
Hear 戦士 in Reincarnated as a Slime7 lines in episodes 1–3 · tappable subtitles · free, no account