Japanese symbol for “investigator”
探偵
たんてい
Romaji: tantei
detective; investigator; sleuth
In Japanese, investigator is 探偵, read たんてい (tantei).
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 detective; investigator; sleuth
- n, vs, vt detective work; secret investigation
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “investigator”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 調査官 | ちょうさかん chousakan | examiner; investigator; inquisitor |
| 捜査官 | そうさかん sousakan | (police) investigator |
| 探究者 | たんきゅうしゃ tankyuusha | investigator; researcher |
| 調査員 | ちょうさいん chousain | investigator; examiner |
| 捜査員 | そうさいん sousain | investigator (usu. of criminal cases) |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 探す | さがす sagasu | to search for; to look for; to hunt for |
| 探検 | たんけん tanken | exploration; expedition |
| 探索 | たんさく tansaku | search; lookup; hunt |
| 探知 | たんち tanchi | detection |
| 探査 | たんさ tansa | probe; inquiry; enquiry |
| 偵察 | ていさつ teisatsu | scouting; reconnaissance |
| 内偵 | ないてい naitei | secret investigation; private enquiry; private inquiry |
| 密偵 | みってい mittei | spy; secret agent |
See also: Chinese symbol for “investigator”.
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.