Japanese symbol for “layers”

重ね

かさね

Romaji: kasane

pile; heap; layers (e.g. of clothing); set (e.g. of boxes)

In Japanese, layers is 重ね, read かさね (kasane).

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 pile; heap; layers (e.g. of clothing); set (e.g. of boxes); course (e.g. of stones)
ctr counter for things that are stacked, piled up (or layered, etc.)
n layers of clothing worn under one's overcoat
n combination of colors created by layering of garments (colours)

Written forms: 重ね、襲. Readings: かさね.

Kanji and stroke order

重

heavy, important, esteem

on: ジュウ、チョウ
kun: え、おも.い、おも.り、おも.なう

9 strokes · JLPT 3

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
重要	じゅうよう juuyou	important; essential; significant
体重	たいじゅう taijuu	(body) weight
貴重	きちょう kichou	precious; valuable
重視	じゅうし juushi	regarding as important; attaching importance to; taking a serious view of
重大	じゅうだい juudai	serious; important; significant
重量	じゅうりょう juuryou	weight

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.