Japanese symbol for “cowardly”
卑怯
ひきょう
Romaji: hikyou
cowardly; craven
In Japanese, cowardly is 卑怯, read ひきょう (hikyou).
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 cowardly; craven
- adj-na, n unfair; mean; sneaky; dirty; dastardly
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “cowardly”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 卑劣 | ひれつ hiretsu | mean; contemptible; despicable |
| 臆病 | おくびょう okubyou | cowardly; timid; easily frightened |
| 女々しい | めめしい memeshii | effeminate; unmanly; cowardly |
| 不甲斐ない | ふがいない fugainai | good-for-nothing; spineless; gutless |
| 怯懦 | きょうだ kyouda | cowardly; spineless; weak-willed |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 卑劣 | ひれつ hiretsu | mean; contemptible; despicable |
| 卑屈 | ひくつ hikutsu | servile; subservient; obsequious |
| 男尊女卑 | だんそんじょひ dansonjohi | male domination of women; male chauvinism; subjection of women |
| 卑下 | ひげ hige | self-abasement; self-depreciation; humility |
| 卑しい | いやしい iyashii | lowborn; humble; lowly |
| 怯える | おびえる obieru | to become frightened; to be frightened (of); to be scared (of) |
| 怯え | おびえ obie | fear; dread; fright |
| 怯む | ひるむ hirumu | to falter; to flinch (from); to recoil (from) |
See also: Chinese symbol for “cowardly”.
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.