Japanese symbol for “destruction”
破壊
はかい
Romaji: hakai
destruction; disruption
In Japanese, destruction is 破壊, read はかい (hakai).
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, vi, vs destruction; disruption
- n, vi, vs (application) crash (comp)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “destruction”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 壊滅 | かいめつ kaimetsu | (complete) destruction; annihilation; devastation |
| 退治 | たいじ taiji | extermination; elimination; eradication |
| 倒壊 | とうかい toukai | destruction; collapse; crumbling |
| 破棄 | はき haki | tearing up and discarding (e.g. documents); destruction |
| 隠滅 | いんめつ inmetsu | destruction (esp. of evidence); spoliation; suppression |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 突破 | とっぱ toppa | breaking through; breakthrough; penetration |
| 破産 | はさん hasan | bankruptcy; insolvency |
| 破る | やぶる yaburu | to tear; to rip; to break |
| 破損 | はそん hason | damage; breakage |
| 破片 | はへん hahen | fragment; broken piece; splinter |
| 崩壊 | ほうかい houkai | collapse; crumbling; breaking down |
| 壊す | こわす kowasu | to break; to destroy; to demolish |
| 壊れる | こわれる kowareru | to be broken; to break; to fall apart |
See also: Chinese symbol for “destruction”.
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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