Japanese symbol for “miscommunication”

訛伝

かでん

Romaji: kaden

mistaken account; miscommunication

In Japanese, miscommunication is 訛伝, read かでん (kaden).

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 mistaken account; miscommunication

Kanji and stroke order

訛

accent, dialect

on: カ
kun: なま.る、なま.り、あやま.る

11 strokes

伝

transmit, go along, walk along

on: デン、テン
kun: つた.わる、つた.える、つた.う、つだ.う

6 strokes · JLPT 2

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
訛り	なまり namari	accent (of one's speech)
転訛	てんか tenka	corruption; bastardisation
訛る	なまる namaru	to speak with an accent; to mispronounce
国訛り	くになまり kuninamari	provincial dialect; local accent
訛音	かおん kaon	accent
伝統	でんとう dentou	tradition; convention
宣伝	せんでん senden	publicity; advertisement; advertising
伝説	でんせつ densetsu	legend; folklore; tradition

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.