Japanese symbol for “epitome”

典型

てんけい

Romaji: tenkei

type; pattern; model; epitome

In Japanese, epitome is 典型, read てんけい (tenkei).

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 type; pattern; model; epitome; exemplar; archetype

Kanji and stroke order

典

code, ceremony, law

on: テン、デン
kun: ふみ、のり

8 strokes · JLPT 1

型

mould, type, model

on: ケイ
kun: かた、-がた

9 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “epitome”

Word	Reading	Meaning
要略	ようりゃく youryaku	epitome; summary; outline
摘記	てっき tekki	summarization; summarisation; epitome
概言	がいげん gaigen	summary; summarization; general remarks

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
古典	こてん koten	classic (work, esp. book); the classics
辞典	じてん jiten	dictionary; lexicon
出典	しゅってん shutten	source (e.g. quotation); authority
特典	とくてん tokuten	privilege; special favor; special favour
式典	しきてん shikiten	ceremony; rites
大型	おおがた oogata	large; large-sized; large-scale
体型	たいけい taikei	figure; body shape; build
小型	こがた kogata	small-sized; small-scale; miniature

See also: Chinese symbol for “epitome”.

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.