Japanese symbol for “empathy”
共感
きょうかん
Romaji: kyoukan
sympathy; empathy; response; identification (with someone)
In Japanese, empathy is 共感, read きょうかん (kyoukan).
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 sympathy; empathy; response; identification (with someone)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “empathy”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 人情 | にんじょう ninjou | humanity; empathy; kindness |
| エンパシー | エンパシー enpashii | empathy |
| 感情移入 | かんじょういにゅう kanjouinyuu | empathy |
| 自己移入 | じこいにゅう jikoinyuu | empathy; understanding; sensitivity |
| 共感性 | きょうかんせい kyoukansei | empathy; capacity for empathy; sympathism |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 共同 | きょうどう kyoudou | cooperation; collaboration; association |
| 共通 | きょうつう kyoutsuu | common; shared; mutual |
| 公共 | こうきょう koukyou | public (facilities, service, etc.); communal |
| 共に | ともに tomoni | together; jointly |
| 共有 | きょうゆう kyouyuu | joint ownership; co-ownership; sharing (e.g. a viewpoint) |
| 感じ | かんじ kanji | feeling; sense; impression |
| 感謝 | かんしゃ kansha | thanks; gratitude; appreciation |
| 感覚 | かんかく kankaku | sense; sensation; feeling |
See also: Chinese symbol for “empathy”.
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.