also: くぐつ
noun
Refers to a literal puppet or marionette, as well as a person or entity controlled by others. The figurative use is common in political contexts.
彼は政界の傀儡に過ぎない。
He is nothing more than a puppet in the political world.
この人形劇では、精
In this puppet show, elaborate marionettes are used.
noun
Less common than the puppet sense; refers to the person who manipulates puppets. Can also be used figuratively for a behind-the-scenes controller.
傀儡師が一体一体の傀儡に命を吹き込む。
The puppeteer breathes life into each puppet one by one.
noun
Only with reading くぐつ
Archaic sense restricted to the reading くぐつ. Historically referred to female entertainers or prostitutes associated with puppeteering troupes.
古くは傀儡が旅回りの芸能者を指した。
In ancient times, 傀儡 (くぐつ) referred to itinerant performers.
Archaic reading for the same kanji, used historically for puppeteers and prostitutes. Marked as gikun.
人形 is the general word for doll or puppet, while 傀儡 often carries a nuance of being manipulated or controlled, especially in figurative use.
操り人形 specifically means a marionette or string puppet, emphasizing the mechanism of control. 傀儡 can be broader, including hand puppets or figurative puppets.
The kanji 傀 and 儡 both relate to large or strange figures. The word originally referred to puppets used in ancient Chinese and Japanese entertainment. The reading くぐつ is an older Japanese term for puppeteers and the associated performers, later extended to mean prostitute. The modern reading かいらい is the Sino-Japanese on'yomi.