King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “gallant”

Romaji: yuukan
brave; courageous; gallant; valiant

In Japanese, gallant is , read (yuukan).

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

  1. adj-na, n brave; courageous; gallant; valiant; heroic

Written forms: . Readings: .

Kanji and stroke order

courage, cheer up, be in high spirits
on: ユウ
kun: いさ.む
9 strokes · JLPT 2
daring, brave, bold
on: カン
kun: あ.えて、あ.えない、あ.えず
12 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “gallant”

WordReadingMeaning
いさぎよい isagiyoigracious (defeat, apology, etc.); graceful; honourable (e.g. death)
いさましい isamashiibrave; valiant; gallant
さっそう sassougallant; dashing; jaunty
りりしい ririshiigallant; manly; brave
ゆうそう yuusouheroic; brave; majestic

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
ゆうき yuukicourage; bravery; valour
ゆうしゃ yuushahero; the brave; man of valour (valor)
ゆうし yuushibrave warrior; hero; brave man
いさましい isamashiibrave; valiant; gallant
いさみあし isamiashiovereagerness; rashness
かかん kakanresolute; determined; bold
かんこう kankoudecisive action; going through with; daring to do
あえて aetepurposely (of something needless, unexpected or seemingly counterproductive, etc.); daringly (doing something); deliberately

See also: Chinese symbol for “gallant”.

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.