Japanese symbol for “greet”
迎える
むかえる
Romaji: mukaeru
to go out to meet; to receive; to welcome; to greet
In Japanese, greet is 迎える, read むかえる (mukaeru).
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
- v1, vt to go out to meet; to receive; to welcome; to greet; to salute; to hail
- v1, vt to call for; to summon; to invite
- v1, vt to accept (e.g. as a member of a group or family); to take (e.g. a wife)
- v1, vt to reach (a certain time, a point in one's life, etc.); to enter (a new phase, new era, etc.); to approach (e.g. death)
Written forms: 迎える、邀える. Readings: むかえる.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “greet”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 出迎える | でむかえる demukaeru | to meet; to greet |
| 声をかける | こえをかける koeokakeru | to greet; to call out (to); to start talking (to) |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 歓迎 | かんげい kangei | welcome; (warm) reception |
| 迎え | むかえ mukae | meeting; greeting; welcome |
| 出迎え | でむかえ demukae | (going out and) receiving (someone); (heading out and) meeting; picking up |
| 迎撃 | げいげき geigeki | intercept; interception; counter-attack |
| 迎え撃つ | むかえうつ mukaeutsu | to meet (the enemy) and attack; to engage (the approaching enemy); to confront |
See also: Chinese symbol for “greet”.
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.