Japanese symbol for “gunpowder”
火薬
かやく
Romaji: kayaku
gunpowder; powder
In Japanese, gunpowder is 火薬, read かやく (kayaku).
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 gunpowder; powder
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “gunpowder”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 硝薬 | しょうやく shouyaku | gunpowder |
| 煙硝 | えんしょう enshou | gunpowder |
| 黒色火薬 | こくしょくかやく kokushokukayaku | black powder; gunpowder |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 火災 | かさい kasai | conflagration; fire |
| 花火 | はなび hanabi | fireworks |
| 火山 | かざん kazan | volcano |
| 噴火 | ふんか funka | eruption; volcanic eruption |
| 火力 | かりょく karyoku | heating power; thermal power |
| 火事 | かじ kaji | fire; conflagration |
| 麻薬 | まやく mayaku | narcotic; drug; dope |
| 医薬品 | いやくひん iyakuhin | medical and pharmaceutical products; medicinal supplies; drugs |
See also: Chinese symbol for “gunpowder”.
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.