Japanese symbol for “meandering”
蛇行
だこう
Romaji: dakou
meandering; snaking; zigzagging
In Japanese, meandering is 蛇行, read だこう (dakou).
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, vi, vs meandering; snaking; zigzagging
Written forms: 蛇行. Readings: だこう、じゃこう.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “meandering”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 曲折 | きょくせつ kyokusetsu | bending; winding; meandering |
| 紆余曲折 | うよきょくせつ uyokyokusetsu | turns and twists; ups and downs; meandering |
| くねくね | くねくね kunekune | winding; meandering; wriggling |
| うねうね | うねうね uneune | winding; meandering; zigzagging |
| 九十九折 | つづらおり tsuzuraori | winding; meandering; sinuous |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 蛇口 | じゃぐち jaguchi | faucet; tap |
| 大蛇 | だいじゃ daija | big snake; (large) serpent |
| 蛇の目 | じゃのめ janome | bull's-eye (pattern); double ring (pattern) |
| 蛇足 | だそく dasoku | redundancy; superfluity; useless addition |
| 行動 | こうどう koudou | action; conduct; behaviour |
| 行う | おこなう okonau | to perform; to do; to conduct oneself |
| 銀行 | ぎんこう ginkou | bank; banking institution |
| 行き | いき iki | the way there; outbound leg; outbound trip |
See also: Chinese symbol for “meandering”.
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.