Japanese symbol for “chef”
板
いた
Romaji: ita
board; plank
In Japanese, chef is 板, read いた (ita).
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 board; plank
- n sheet (of metal); plate (of glass); pane; slab
- n cutting board; chopping board
- n chef (esp. of high-end Japanese cuisine); cook
- n stage (i.e. at a theatre)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “chef”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 板前 | いたまえ itamae | chef (esp. of high-end Japanese cuisine); cook |
| シェフ | シェフ shefu | chef |
| コック | コック kokku | cook; chef |
| 料理人 | りょうりにん ryourinin | cook; chef |
| 調理人 | ちょうりにん chourinin | chef; cook |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 看板 | かんばん kanban | signboard; sign; billboard |
| 黒板 | こくばん kokuban | blackboard |
| 甲板 | かんぱん kanpan | deck (of a ship) |
| 登板 | とうばん touban | taking the mound; pitching a game |
| 鋼板 | こうはん kouhan | steel sheet; steel plate |
| 鉄板 | てっぱん teppan | iron plate; steel plate |
See also: Chinese symbol for “chef”.
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.
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