Japanese symbol for “donate”
施す
ほどこす
Romaji: hodokosu
to give (time, money, goods); to donate
In Japanese, donate is 施す, read ほどこす (hodokosu).
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
- v5s, vt to give (time, money, goods); to donate
- v5s, vt to do; to perform; to conduct
- v5s, vt to apply (processing, makeup, etc.); to add (e.g. ornamentation, annotation)
- v5s, vt to sow; to seed; to scatter (e.g. fertilizer); to sprinkle
- v5s, vt to spread far and wide
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “donate”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 寄せる | よせる yoseru | to deliver (opinion, news, etc.); to send (e.g. a letter); to contribute |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 施設 | しせつ shisetsu | facility; facilities; institution |
| 実施 | じっし jisshi | enforcement; implementation; putting into practice |
| 施行 | しこう shikou | putting in force (a law); putting into operation; putting into effect |
| 施策 | しさく shisaku | policy; measure |
| 施工 | せこう sekou | construction; constructing; carrying out |
See also: Chinese symbol for “donate”.
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.