Japanese symbol for “acquired”
後天的
こうてんてき
Romaji: koutenteki
acquired (e.g. characteristic); learned (e.g. behaviour)
In Japanese, acquired is 後天的, read こうてんてき (koutenteki).
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
- adj-na acquired (e.g. characteristic); learned (e.g. behaviour)
- adj-na a posteriori (phil)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “acquired”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 後天性 | こうてんせい koutensei | acquired; a posteriori |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 最後 | さいご saigo | end; conclusion |
| 今後 | こんご kongo | from now on; hereafter |
| 午後 | ごご gogo | afternoon; p.m. |
| 後半 | こうはん kouhan | second half; latter half |
| 後ろ | うしろ ushiro | back; behind; rear |
| 直後 | ちょくご chokugo | immediately following |
| 天皇 | てんのう tennou | Emperor of Japan |
| 天気 | てんき tenki | weather |
| 目的 | もくてき mokuteki | purpose; goal; aim |
See also: Chinese symbol for “acquired”.
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.