Japanese symbol for “dowager”

後室

こうしつ

Romaji: koushitsu

dowager; widow

In Japanese, dowager is 後室, read こうしつ (koushitsu).

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 dowager; widow

Kanji and stroke order

後

behind, back, later

on: ゴ、コウ
kun: のち、うし.ろ、うしろ、あと

9 strokes · JLPT 4

室

room, apartment, chamber

on: シツ
kun: むろ

9 strokes · JLPT 3

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
最後	さいご saigo	end; conclusion
今後	こんご kongo	from now on; hereafter
午後	ごご gogo	afternoon; p.m.
後半	こうはん kouhan	second half; latter half
後ろ	うしろ ushiro	back; behind; rear
直後	ちょくご chokugo	immediately following
教室	きょうしつ kyoushitsu	classroom; lecture room
室内	しつない shitsunai	indoor; inside the room

See also: Chinese symbol for “dowager”.

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.