Japanese symbol for “bower”

木陰

こかげ

Romaji: kokage

shade of a tree; bower

In Japanese, bower is 木陰, read こかげ (kokage).

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 shade of a tree; bower

Written forms: 木陰、木蔭、樹陰、樹蔭. Readings: こかげ.

Kanji and stroke order

木

tree, wood

on: ボク、モク
kun: き、こ-

4 strokes · JLPT 4

陰

shade, yin, negative

on: イン
kun: かげ、かげ.る

11 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “bower”

Word	Reading	Meaning
亭	てい tei	arbor; arbour; bower
東屋	あずまや azumaya	arbor; arbour; bower

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
木材	もくざい mokuzai	lumber; timber; wood
木造	もくぞう mokuzou	wooden; made of wood; wooden construction
木曜	もくよう mokuyou	Thursday
樹木	じゅもく jumoku	tree; trees and shrubs
青木	あおき aoki	Japanese laurel (Aucuba japonica); spotted laurel
並木	なみき namiki	roadside trees; row of trees
陰謀	いんぼう inbou	plot; intrigue; scheme
日陰	ひかげ hikage	shade; shadow

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.