Archaic term for a practitioner of swordsmanship, especially in historical contexts. Modern Japanese more commonly uses 剣士 or 剣術家.
Swordsmen of the Edo period trained diligently at the dojo every day.
Compound of 剣術 (swordsmanship) and 者 (person). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the term follows a common pattern for naming practitioners of an art.