Meaning & use
karma
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountablereligion
In Hindu and Buddhist belief, the force created by a person's actions that shapes what happens to them in this life or later ones.
Grammar: Uncountable: good karma.
Patterns
- good karma
- bad karma
Monks teach that karma follows every deed.
She believes her karma decides her next life.
In Buddhism, karma depends on intention.
noununcountableinformal
The idea that good or bad deeds bring matching results to the person who did them.
Grammar: Casual Western use, informal.
Patterns
- good karma
- it's karma
He helped a stranger for good karma.
That's karma for lying to everyone.
Returning the wallet was good karma.
nounsingularslangrare
A feeling or atmosphere given off by a person or place.
Grammar: Slang, rare.
Patterns
- good karma
The cafe has good karma.
I get bad karma from that building.
The house has strange karma.
Common combinations
- good karma
- Volunteering builds good karma.
- bad karma
- Cheating brings bad karma.
- karma police
- Some joke about the karma police.
- instant karma
- Instant karma hit him when he slipped.
- accumulate karma
- Monks speak of accumulating karma.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- karmic adjective
- relating to karma
Commonly confused: karma or dharma?
karma vs dharma
Dharma means duty or cosmic law, not the result of deeds.
Practice
In casual speech, 'that was karma' usually means...
Choose one answer.
Karma in everyday use suggests deeds bring matching results.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “karma”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.