Japanese symbol for “annul”

反故にする

ほごにする

Romaji: hogonisuru

to throw away as useless; to scrap

In Japanese, annul is 反故にする, read ほごにする (hogonisuru).

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

exp, vs-i to throw away as useless; to scrap
exp, vs-i to make null and void; to renege; to annul; to revoke

Written forms: 反故にする、反古にする. Readings: ほごにする.

Kanji and stroke order

反

anti-

on: ハン、ホン、タン、ホ
kun: そ.る、そ.らす、かえ.す、かえ.る

4 strokes · JLPT 2

故

happenstance, especially, intentionally

on: コ
kun: ゆえ、ふる.い、もと

9 strokes · JLPT 2

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
反対	はんたい hantai	opposition; resistance; antagonism
反応	はんのう hannou	reaction; response
違反	いはん ihan	violation; offense; offence
反発	はんぱつ hanpatsu	opposition; rebellion; revolt
反省	はんせい hansei	reflection; reconsideration; introspection
反乱	はんらん hanran	insurrection; mutiny; rebellion
事故	じこ jiko	accident; incident; trouble
故障	こしょう koshou	fault; trouble; breakdown

See also: Chinese symbol for “annul”.

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.