King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “atrocity”

Romaji: bougyaku
tyranny; atrocity

In Japanese, atrocity is , read (bougyaku).

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. adj-na, n tyranny; atrocity

Kanji and stroke order

outburst, rave, fret
on: ボウ、バク
kun: あば.く、あば.れる
15 strokes · JLPT 2
tyrannize, oppress
on: ギャク
kun: しいた.げる
9 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “atrocity”

WordReadingMeaning
あくぎゃく akugyakuatrocity
さんこく sankokuatrocity; cruelty; brutality
だいあく daiakuatrocity; outrage; heinousness
ぼうれい boureityranny; atrocity; brutality
ざんぎゃくひどう zangyakuhidouinhumanity; atrocity

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
ぼうりょく bouryokuviolence; mayhem
ぼうどう boudouinsurrection; riot; uprising
ばくろ bakurodisclosure; exposure; revelation
らんぼう ranbouviolence; assault; rowdiness
ぼうこう boukouassault; outrage; act of violence
ぼうらく bourakuslump; crash; heavy fall
ぎゃくさつ gyakusatsuslaughter; massacre
ぎゃくたい gyakutaiabuse; ill-treatment; maltreatment

See also: Chinese symbol for “atrocity”.

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.