Japanese symbol for “inspiring”
鼓吹
こすい
Romaji: kosui
rousing (courage, morale, etc.); encouragement
In Japanese, inspiring is 鼓吹, read こすい (kosui).
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, vs, vt rousing (courage, morale, etc.); encouragement
- n, vs, vt advocacy; promotion (of a belief); encouragement; inspiring (someone with an idea)
Kanji and stroke order
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 太鼓 | たいこ taiko | drum |
| 鼓動 | こどう kodou | beat; palpitation; pulsation |
| 鼓舞 | こぶ kobu | encouragement; inspiration; rousing |
| 鼓膜 | こまく komaku | eardrum; tympanic membrane |
| 太鼓判 | たいこばん taikoban | large seal; large stamp |
| 舌鼓 | したつづみ shitatsuzumi | smacking one's lips (over food) |
| 吹雪 | ふぶき fubuki | snow storm; blizzard |
| 吹奏楽 | すいそうがく suisougaku | wind music; wind instrument music |
See also: Chinese symbol for “inspiring”.
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.