Japanese symbol for “hostilities”
交戦
こうせん
Romaji: kousen
war; battle; hostilities
In Japanese, hostilities is 交戦, read こうせん (kousen).
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, vi, vs war; battle; hostilities
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “hostilities”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 兵端 | へいたん heitan | hostilities; beginning of hostilities |
| 対敵 | たいてき taiteki | confronting the enemy; hostilities |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 交換 | こうかん koukan | exchange; interchange; switching |
| 交通 | こうつう koutsuu | traffic; transportation |
| 交渉 | こうしょう koushou | negotiations; bargaining; discussions |
| 交流 | こうりゅう kouryuu | exchange (e.g. cultural); interchange; interaction |
| 外交 | がいこう gaikou | diplomacy |
| 交代 | こうたい koutai | change; alternation; rotation |
| 戦争 | せんそう sensou | war |
| 戦い | たたかい tatakai | battle; war; fight |
See also: Chinese symbol for “hostilities”.
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.