Japanese symbol for “burly”

頑丈

がんじょう

Romaji: ganjou

solid; firm; stout; burly

In Japanese, burly is 頑丈, read がんじょう (ganjou).

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

adj-na, n solid; firm; stout; burly; strong; sturdy

Written forms: 頑丈、岩乗. Readings: がんじょう.

Kanji and stroke order

頑

stubborn, foolish, firmly

on: ガン
kun: かたく.な

13 strokes · JLPT 1

丈

length, ten shaku, measure

on: ジョウ
kun: たけ、だけ

3 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “burly”

Word	Reading	Meaning
逞しい	たくましい takumashii	burly; strong; sturdy
ごつい	ごつい gotsui	large and rough; big and tough; rugged (hands, features, etc.)

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
頑張る	がんばる ganbaru	to persevere; to persist; to keep at it
頑固	がんこ ganko	stubborn; obstinate; pigheaded
頑張り	がんばり ganbari	tenacity; endurance
頑強	がんきょう gankyou	stubborn; dogged; persistent
頑張れ	がんばれ ganbare	hang in there; go for it; keep at it
大丈夫	だいじょうぶ daijoubu	safe; secure; sound
丈夫	じょうぶ joubu	healthy; robust; strong
背丈	せたけ setake	stature; height

See also: Chinese symbol for “burly”.

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.