karma

karma — noun

1. Within Hindu and Buddhist teachings, the moral energy that a person accumulates

1.名詞B2
釋義

Within Hindu and Buddhist teachings, the moral energy that a person accumulates through their deeds and choices during one lifetime, which shapes the circumstances of the life they enter after death.

例句

Many Buddhists believe that a person's karma in this life shapes their next rebirth.

karma + 'shapes next rebirth' — religious context

Cyrus hoped his years of generous giving would create good karma for his next life.

good karma from virtuous actions

同義詞
  • destiny

    Focuses on what is fated to happen, without implying that your own actions created it.

  • fate

    Suggests an outside force controls events; karma puts the cause in your own hands.

文法句型

karma as an uncountable noun

用法筆記

Typically uncountable and used without an article. In religious contexts, karma operates across lifetimes — do not confuse with the everyday sense of 'instant payback' (sense 2).

常見錯誤

❌I got bad karma for lying to my mum yesterday.
✅I got instant karma for lying to my mum yesterday.
💡Using 'karma' for immediate, same-day payback fits the everyday sense (2), not the religious sense (1).
❌She has a good karma.
✅She has good karma.
💡Karma is uncountable; never use 'a' or 'an' before it.

2. The idea that a person's past behaviour — good or bad — brings matching results

2.名詞B1
釋義

The idea that a person's past behaviour — good or bad — brings matching results later in their life, as if the world naturally keeps a moral balance.

例句

Andrés laughed after tripping, calling it karma for mocking a friend's earlier fall.

karma as ironic same-day payback

After Lan returned a lost wallet, a stranger bought her coffee — she whispered 'good karma.'

good karma from a kind deed

同義詞
  • retribution

    More formal and severe; implies punishment rather than neutral balancing.

  • comeuppance

    Informal and strongly negative — only for bad outcomes, not good ones.

  • what goes around comes around

    A full proverb rather than a single noun; carries the same idea of moral balance.

文法句型

karma as an uncountable noun

often preceded by 'good' or 'bad'

用法筆記

Common in informal speech, social media, and pop culture. Unlike sense 1, this sense implies immediate or short-term consequences in the same lifetime — often with an ironic or humorous tone.

常見錯誤

❌He has bad karma from a past life.
✅He has bad karma from cheating on the test.
💡The everyday sense (2) refers to consequences in the same lifetime, not across reincarnations.
❌Karma is a religious concept only.
✅Karma can also mean everyday payback.
💡Learners may not realise that in modern English, 'karma' is often used informally and non-religiously.