Japanese symbol for “jailhouse”
牢屋
ろうや
Romaji: rouya
jail; gaol; jailhouse
In Japanese, jailhouse is 牢屋, read ろうや (rouya).
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 jail; gaol; jailhouse
Kanji and stroke order
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 牢獄 | ろうごく rougoku | prison; jail; gaol |
| 堅牢 | けんろう kenrou | solid; strong; sturdy |
| 座敷牢 | ざしきろう zashikirou | room for confining criminals or lunatics (Edo period) |
| 牢名主 | ろうなぬし rounanushi | head of a prisoners' group (Edo period) |
| 入牢 | にゅうろう nyuurou | imprisonment |
| 部屋 | へや heya | room; chamber |
| 屋根 | やね yane | roof |
| 屋敷 | やしき yashiki | residence; estate; grounds |
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.