King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “lover”

Romaji: koibito
lover; sweetheart; boyfriend; girlfriend

In Japanese, lover is , read (koibito).

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

  1. n lover; sweetheart; boyfriend; girlfriend

Kanji and stroke order

romance, in love, yearn for
on: レン
kun: こ.う、こい、こい.しい
10 strokes · JLPT 2
person
on: ジン、ニン
kun: ひと、-り、-と
2 strokes · JLPT 4

Other Japanese words for “lover”

WordReadingMeaning
あいじん aijinlover; mistress
いろ irolover; paramour
ファン fanfan; enthusiast; lover (of)
ラバー rabaalover
じょうふ joufulover; mistress; kept woman

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
れんあい ren'ailove; romance; tender passion
はつこい hatsukoifirst love; puppy love
こいする koisuruto fall in love (with); to love
しつれん shitsurendisappointed love; broken heart; unrequited love
こいしい koishiiyearned for; longed for; missed
にんげん ningenhuman being; human; person
こじん kojinindividual; private person; personal
にんき ninkipopularity; public favor

See also: Chinese symbol for “lover”.

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.