Japanese symbol for “breakwater”
防波堤
ぼうはてい
Romaji: bouhatei
breakwater; mole; seawall
In Japanese, breakwater is 防波堤, read ぼうはてい (bouhatei).
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 breakwater; mole; seawall
- n bulwark; shield (e.g. against critcism); protective barrier; measure
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “breakwater”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 突堤 | とってい tottei | jetty; breakwater; pier |
| 海堡 | かいほう kaihou | breakwater; coast battery |
| 波止 | はと hato | breakwater; mole; seawall |
| 消波堤 | しょうはてい shouhatei | breakwater; wave-absorbing dyke (dike) |
| 波除け | なみよけ namiyoke | sea wall; breakwater |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 防衛 | ぼうえい bouei | defense; defence; protection |
| 防止 | ぼうし boushi | prevention; check |
| 予防 | よぼう yobou | prevention; protection (against); precaution |
| 防御 | ぼうぎょ bougyo | defense; defence; safeguard |
| 防災 | ぼうさい bousai | disaster preparedness; prevention of damage resulting from a natural disaster; protection against disaster |
| 消防 | しょうぼう shoubou | fire fighting |
| 電波 | でんぱ denpa | radio wave; reception; signal |
| 津波 | つなみ tsunami | tsunami; tidal wave |
| 堤防 | ていぼう teibou | bank; weir; embankment |
See also: Chinese symbol for “breakwater”.
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.