Japanese symbol for “encounter”
遭遇
そうぐう
Romaji: souguu
encounter; running into; meeting with (e.g. an accident); being confronted with (e.g. a difficulty)
In Japanese, encounter is 遭遇, read そうぐう (souguu).
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 encounter; running into; meeting with (e.g. an accident); being confronted with (e.g. a difficulty)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “encounter”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 出会い | であい deai | meeting; rendezvous; encounter |
| 会う | あう au | to meet; to encounter; to see |
| 出会う | であう deau | to meet (by chance); to come across; to run across |
| 接する | せっする sessuru | to encounter; to come across |
| 出会 | しゅっかい shukkai | encounter; chance meeting |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 遭難 | そうなん sounan | (meeting with) disaster; (having an) accident; mishap |
| 遭難者 | そうなんしゃ sounansha | victim; sufferer |
| 遭難信号 | そうなんしんごう sounanshingou | distress signal; SOS |
| 遭遇戦 | そうぐうせん souguusen | encounter; engagement; battle |
| 難に遭う | なんにあう nanniau | to meet with disaster |
| 待遇 | たいぐう taiguu | treatment; reception; service |
| 境遇 | きょうぐう kyouguu | one's circumstances; environment; situation (in life) |
| 優遇 | ゆうぐう yuuguu | favorable treatment; favourable treatment; hospitality |
See also: Chinese symbol for “encounter”.
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.