King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “annihilation”

Romaji: zenmetsu
total destruction; complete destruction; annihilation; being wiped out

In Japanese, annihilation is , read (zenmetsu).

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

  1. n, vi, vs total destruction; complete destruction; annihilation; being wiped out
  2. n, vi, vs total defeat; complete failure

Kanji and stroke order

whole, entire, all
on: ゼン
kun: まった.く、すべ.て
6 strokes · JLPT 2
destroy, ruin, overthrow
on: メツ
kun: ほろ.びる、ほろ.ぶ、ほろ.ぼす
13 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “annihilation”

WordReadingMeaning
しょうめつ shoumetsuannihilation
かいめつ kaimetsu(complete) destruction; annihilation; devastation
かんぱい kanpai(suffering a) complete defeat; utter defeat; annihilation
せんめつ senmetsuannihilation; extermination; (total) destruction
みなごろし minagoroshimassacre; annihilation; wholesale slaughter

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
ぜんぶ zenbuall; entire; whole
ぜんいん zen'inall members; all hands; everyone
あんぜん anzensafety; security
かんぜん kanzenperfect; complete
ぜんこく zenkokuthe whole country
ぜんたい zentaiwhole; entirety
しょうめつ shoumetsuextinction; extinguishment; disappearance
はめつ hametsuruin; destruction; fall

See also: Chinese symbol for “annihilation”.

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.

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