Japanese symbol for “abstinence”
禁欲
きんよく
Romaji: kin'yoku
abstinence; self-denial; celibacy; asceticism
In Japanese, abstinence is 禁欲, read きんよく (kin'yoku).
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Meanings
- n, vi, vs abstinence; self-denial; celibacy; asceticism; abnegation
Written forms: 禁欲、禁慾. Readings: きんよく.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “abstinence”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 忌み | いみ imi | mourning; abstinence |
| 物断ち | ものだち monodachi | abstinence |
| 小斎 | しょうさい shousai | abstinence (in Catholicism) |
| 節欲 | せつよく setsuyoku | control one's desires; abstinence |
| 禁欲生活 | きんよくせいかつ kin'yokuseikatsu | an ascetic existence; (leading) a continent life; abstinence |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 禁止 | きんし kinshi | prohibition; inhibition; ban |
| 禁煙 | きんえん kin'en | abstaining from smoking; quitting smoking |
| 監禁 | かんきん kankin | confinement; imprisonment; incarceration |
| 解禁 | かいきん kaikin | lifting a ban; raising an embargo; opening a season (hunting, fishing, etc.) |
| 禁物 | きんもつ kinmotsu | thing that should be (carefully) avoided; no-no; thing to definitely not do |
| 禁じる | きんじる kinjiru | to forbid; to ban; to prohibit |
| 欲しい | ほしい hoshii | wanting (to have); desiring; wishing for |
| 意欲 | いよく iyoku | will; desire; eagerness |
See also: Chinese symbol for “abstinence”.
Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.