Japanese symbol for “cited”

前掲書

ぜんけいしょ

Romaji: zenkeisho

(in the work) cited; aforementioned work; op. cit. (opere citato, opus citatum)

In Japanese, cited is 前掲書, read ぜんけいしょ (zenkeisho).

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

exp (in the work) cited; aforementioned work; op. cit. (opere citato, opus citatum)

Kanji and stroke order

前

in front, before

on: ゼン
kun: まえ、-まえ

9 strokes · JLPT 4

掲

put up (a notice), put up, hoist

on: ケイ
kun: かか.げる

11 strokes · JLPT 1

書

write

on: ショ
kun: か.く、-が.き、-がき

10 strokes · JLPT 4

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
名前	なまえ namae	name
以前	いぜん izen	before; prior to; ago
お前	おまえ omae	you
前回	ぜんかい zenkai	previous time; last time; previous installment
午前	ごぜん gozen	morning; a.m.
当たり前	あたりまえ atarimae	natural; reasonable; obvious
掲載	けいさい keisai	publication (e.g. of an article in a newspaper); carrying (e.g. a story); running (e.g. a serial)
掲げる	かかげる kakageru	to put up (a notice, sign, etc.); to hang out (e.g. a banner); to fly (e.g. a flag)
文書	ぶんしょ bunsho	document; writing; letter

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.