{ ‖ . n. [ Jap. jūjutsu; jū soft (prob. because no weapons are used) + jutsu art. ] The Japanese art of self-defense without weapons, now widely used as a system of physical training. It depends for its efficiency largely upon the principle of making clever use of an opponent's strength, weight, and movements to disable or injure him, and by applying pressure so that his opposing movement will throw him out of balance, dislocate or break a joint, etc. It opposes knowledge and skill to brute strength, and demands an extensive practical knowledge of human anatomy. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ Jap., soft technique. ] a method of self-defense without weapons that was developed in China and Japan; holds and blows are supplemented by clever use of the attacker's own weight and strength.
Syn. -- jujitsu, jiujutsu, jujutsu. [ WordNet 1.5 ]