Japanese symbol for “employ”
雇う
やとう
Romaji: yatou
to employ; to hire; to take on
In Japanese, employ is 雇う, read やとう (yatou).
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
- v5u, vt to employ; to hire; to take on
- v5u, vt to charter (a car, boat, etc.); to hire
Written forms: 雇う、傭う. Readings: やとう.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “employ”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 使う | つかう tsukau | to use (a person, animal, puppet, etc.); to employ; to handle |
| 抱える | かかえる kakaeru | to employ; to have (on one's staff); to hire |
| 入れる | いれる ireru | to admit; to accept; to employ |
| 拾う | ひろう hirou | to take on (someone in adverse circumstances); to employ; to give a job |
| 置く | おく oku | to appoint (someone to a certain position); to hire; to employ |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 雇用 | こよう koyou | employment; hire |
| 解雇 | かいこ kaiko | dismissal (of an employee); discharge; firing |
| 雇い主 | やといぬし yatoinushi | employer |
| 雇い | やとい yatoi | employee; employment |
| 日雇い | ひやとい hiyatoi | daily employment; hiring by the day; day laborer |
See also: Chinese symbol for “employ”.
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.