Japanese symbol for “collation”

照合

しょうごう

Romaji: shougou

check (against); collation (with); comparison; verification

In Japanese, collation is 照合, read しょうごう (shougou).

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, vs, vt check (against); collation (with); comparison; verification

Kanji and stroke order

照

illuminate, shine, compare

on: ショウ
kun: て.る、て.らす、て.れる

13 strokes · JLPT 2

合

fit, suit, join

on: ゴウ、ガッ、カッ
kun: あ.う、-あ.う、あ.い、あい-

6 strokes · JLPT 3

Other Japanese words for “collation”

Word	Reading	Meaning
校合	きょうごう kyougou	collation; examining and comparing; checking (against the original text)
取り纏め	とりまとめ torimatome	collecting; collection; collation
校書	きょうしょ kyousho	collation; examining and comparing; checking (against the original text)
校勘	こうかん koukan	collation; examining and comparing

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
参照	さんしょう sanshou	reference (e.g. to a dictionary, passage, footnotes); consultation; comparison
照明	しょうめい shoumei	illumination; lighting
対照	たいしょう taishou	contrast; antithesis; comparison
照会	しょうかい shoukai	inquiry; query; enquiry
照らす	てらす terasu	to shine on; to illuminate
照準	しょうじゅん shoujun	sight (e.g. of a gun); aim; alignment
場合	ばあい baai	case; occasion; situation
試合	しあい shiai	match; game; bout

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.