Japanese symbol for “embellish”
飾る
かざる
Romaji: kazaru
to decorate; to ornament; to adorn
In Japanese, embellish is 飾る, read かざる (kazaru).
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
- v5r, vt to decorate; to ornament; to adorn
- v5r, vt to display; to exhibit; to put on show; to arrange
- v5r, vt to mark (e.g. the day with a victory); to adorn (e.g. the front page); to grace (e.g. the cover)
- v5r, vt to affect (a manner); to keep up (appearances); to embellish; to dress up; to be showy; to be pretentious
Written forms: 飾る、餝る、錺る、荘る. Readings: かざる.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “embellish”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 飾り立てる | かざりたてる kazaritateru | to decorate gaudily; to overdecorate; to deck out |
| 尾ひれをつける | おひれをつける ohireotsukeru | to exaggerate; to embellish (a story, rumor, etc.) |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 飾り | かざり kazari | decoration; ornament; trimmings |
| 装飾 | そうしょく soushoku | ornament; decoration |
| 服飾 | ふくしょく fukushoku | clothing and accessories; attire |
| 粉飾 | ふんしょく funshoku | embellishment (e.g. of a story); ornamentation; decoration |
| 飾り付け | かざりつけ kazaritsuke | decoration; arrangement |
See also: Chinese symbol for “embellish”.
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.