King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “heartstrings”

Romaji: kinsen
heartstrings

In Japanese, heartstrings is , read (kinsen).

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. n heartstrings
  2. n koto string

Kanji and stroke order

harp, koto
on: キン、ゴン
kun: こと
12 strokes · JLPT 1
line, track
on: セン
kun: すじ
15 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “heartstrings”

WordReadingMeaning
こころのきんせん kokoronokinsenheartstrings; innermost soul

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
もっきん mokkinxylophone
たいしょうごと taishougotoNagoya harp; Taishō koto; Japanese harp with two to five strings
たてごと tategotoharp; lyre
げっきん gekkinyueqin (4-stringed Chinese lute)
こうきん koukinmouth harp; Jew's harp
しんかんせん shinkansenShinkansen; bullet train
むせん musenradio (communication)
ろせん rosenroute (bus, train, air, etc.); line

See also: Chinese symbol for “heartstrings”.

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.

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