Japanese symbol for “inspiration”
感動
かんどう
Romaji: kandou
being deeply moved emotionally; excitement; passion; inspiration
In Japanese, inspiration is 感動, read かんどう (kandou).
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 being deeply moved emotionally; excitement; passion; inspiration; deep emotion; strong impression
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “inspiration”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 感激 | かんげき kangeki | deep emotion; impression; inspiration |
| 霊感 | れいかん reikan | inspiration; afflatus |
| 啓発 | けいはつ keihatsu | enlightenment; development; edification |
| 鼓舞 | こぶ kobu | encouragement; inspiration; rousing |
| 感化 | かんか kanka | influence (on someone); inspiration |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 感じ | かんじ kanji | feeling; sense; impression |
| 感謝 | かんしゃ kansha | thanks; gratitude; appreciation |
| 感覚 | かんかく kankaku | sense; sensation; feeling |
| 感じる | かんじる kanjiru | to feel; to sense; to experience |
| 感情 | かんじょう kanjou | emotion; feeling; feelings |
| 感染 | かんせん kansen | infection; contagion; becoming infected |
| 活動 | かつどう katsudou | activity (of a person, organization, animal, volcano, etc.); action; operation |
| 行動 | こうどう koudou | action; conduct; behaviour |
See also: Chinese symbol for “inspiration”.
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.