Try Animei free

Teki (敵): what it means in anime

敵

てき · teki · opponent; rival; adversary JLPT N3

Teki means "enemy", "opponent" or "rival". Anime uses it for everything from an army to a chess partner, and 敵じゃない ("not an enemy") is a classic line of reassurance.

Where you hear it 5 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.

Usage and nuance

It covers any opposing side: 敵の攻撃 is "the enemy's attack", 敵に回す is "to turn someone into an enemy". In sports shows like Haikyu the other team is 敵 without any hatred implied.

The friend-or-foe question, 敵か味方か (teki ka mikata ka), is a stock line. 味方 (mikata) is "ally" and is worth learning in the same breath.

Compounds: 無敵 (muteki) is "invincible", literally "no enemy", and 宿敵 (shukuteki) is "arch-enemy".

Hear 敵 in Code Geass14 lines in episodes 1–3 · tappable subtitles · free, no account