Japanese symbol for “highway”
街道
かいどう
Romaji: kaidou
highway (esp. one existing from the Edo period); main road
In Japanese, highway is 街道, read かいどう (kaidou).
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 highway (esp. one existing from the Edo period); main road
- n highway (e.g. to success); path (to becoming ...)
- n subdistrict (in China)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “highway”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 道路 | どうろ douro | road; highway |
| 高速 | こうそく kousoku | highway; freeway; expressway |
| ハイウェイ | ハイウェイ haiwei | highway |
| 本道 | ほんどう hondou | highway; main road; the right road |
| 公道 | こうどう koudou | public road; highway |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 街頭 | がいとう gaitou | (on the) street |
| 市街 | しがい shigai | urban areas; the streets; town |
| 街角 | まちかど machikado | street corner |
| 市街地 | しがいち shigaichi | town area; urban area; metropolitan area |
| 街灯 | がいとう gaitou | street light; streetlamp |
| 報道 | ほうどう houdou | report (of news); reporting; news |
| 道路 | どうろ douro | road; highway |
| 鉄道 | てつどう tetsudou | railroad; railway; rail transport |
See also: Chinese symbol for “highway”.
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.