King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “mediate”

Romaji: atsukau
to deal with (a person); to treat; to handle; to take care of

In Japanese, mediate is , read (atsukau).

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. v5u, vt to deal with (a person); to treat; to handle; to take care of; to entertain
  2. v5u, vt to deal with (a problem); to handle; to manage
  3. v5u, vt to operate (e.g. a machine); to handle; to work
  4. v5u, vt to deal in; to sell
  5. v5u, vt to cover (a topic); to treat; to discuss; to take up
  6. v5u, vt to treat A as B

Kanji and stroke order

handle, entertain, thresh
on: ソウ、キュウ
kun: あつか.い、あつか.う、あつか.る、こ.く
6 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “mediate”

WordReadingMeaning
わける wakeruto break up (a fight); to mediate
とりもつ torimotsuto act as a go-between (for); to mediate; to arrange
かいす kaisuto use as an intermediary; to mediate; to assist
とりなす torinasuto mediate; to intervene; to smooth
あいだにたつ aidanitatsuto mediate; to intervene

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
あつかい atsukaitreatment; service; dealing (with)
とりあつかい toriatsukaitreatment; service; handling
とりあつかう toriatsukauto handle; to operate (a machine, etc.); to use
しごき shigokihazing; gruelling training
しごく shigokuto draw through one's hand; to stroke (e.g. a beard)

See also: Chinese symbol for “mediate”.

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.