Japanese symbol for “flying”
航空
こうくう
Romaji: koukuu
aviation; flying
In Japanese, flying is 航空, read こうくう (koukuu).
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 aviation; flying
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “flying”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 飛行 | ひこう hikou | flight; flying; aviation |
| 操縦 | そうじゅう soujuu | steering; piloting; flying |
| 飛び | とび tobi | flying; leaping; flight |
| フライング | フライング furaingu | flying |
| 飛翔 | ひしょう hishou | flight; flying; soaring |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 航空機 | こうくうき koukuuki | aircraft |
| 航海 | こうかい koukai | (sea) voyage; navigation; sailing |
| 航路 | こうろ kouro | (air or sea) route; course; line |
| 難航 | なんこう nankou | difficult voyage; stormy passage; hard flight |
| 渡航 | とこう tokou | voyage; passage; travelling |
| 空気 | くうき kuuki | air; atmosphere |
| 空港 | くうこう kuukou | airport |
| 空間 | くうかん kuukan | space; room; airspace |
See also: Chinese symbol for “flying”.
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.