Japanese symbol for “ban”

禁止

きんし

Romaji: kinshi

prohibition; inhibition; ban

In Japanese, ban is 禁止, read きんし (kinshi).

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, vs, vt prohibition; inhibition; ban

Kanji and stroke order

禁

prohibition, ban, forbid

on: キン

13 strokes · JLPT 2

止

stop, halt

on: シ
kun: と.まる、-ど.まり、と.める、-と.める

4 strokes · JLPT 3

Other Japanese words for “ban”

Word	Reading	Meaning
禁	きん kin	ban (e.g. on smoking); prohibition
禁じる	きんじる kinjiru	to forbid; to ban; to prohibit
厳禁	げんきん genkin	strict prohibition; ban; interdiction
停止	ていし teishi	suspension (of payment, a licence, etc.); (temporary) prohibition; ban
差し止め	さしとめ sashitome	prohibition; ban; suspension

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
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
停止	ていし teishi	stoppage; coming to a stop; halt
中止	ちゅうし chuushi	interruption; discontinuance; suspension
止まる	とまる tomaru	to stop (moving); to come to a stop