Japanese symbol for “flak”

対空砲火

たいくうほうか

Romaji: taikuuhouka

anti-aircraft fire; flak

In Japanese, flak is 対空砲火, read たいくうほうか (taikuuhouka).

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 anti-aircraft fire; flak

Kanji and stroke order

対

vis-a-vis, opposite, even

on: タイ、ツイ
kun: あいて、こた.える、そろ.い、つれあ.い

7 strokes · JLPT 2

空

empty, sky, void

on: クウ
kun: そら、あ.く、あ.き、あ.ける

8 strokes · JLPT 4

砲

cannon, gun

on: ホウ

10 strokes · JLPT 1

火

fire

on: カ
kun: ひ、-び、ほ-

4 strokes · JLPT 4

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
対応	たいおう taiou	correspondence (to); equivalence
絶対	ぜったい zettai	absolutely; definitely; unconditionally
対象	たいしょう taishou	target; object (of worship, study, etc.); subject (of taxation, etc.)
対策	たいさく taisaku	measure; step; countermeasure
反対	はんたい hantai	opposition; resistance; antagonism
対立	たいりつ tairitsu	confrontation; opposition; antagonism
空気	くうき kuuki	air; atmosphere
空港	くうこう kuukou	airport
大砲	たいほう taihou	(large) gun; cannon; artillery
火災	かさい kasai	conflagration; fire

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.