Japanese symbol for “modesty”
遠慮
えんりょ
Romaji: enryo
reserve; constraint; restraint; modesty
In Japanese, modesty is 遠慮, read えんりょ (enryo).
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 reserve; constraint; restraint; modesty; diffidence; hesitation
- n, vi, vs declining; refraining
- n, vi, vs forethought; foresight
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “modesty”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 謙遜 | けんそん kenson | modesty; humility; being humble |
| 慎み | つつしみ tsutsushimi | modesty; self-control; discretion |
| 謙譲 | けんじょう kenjou | modesty; humility |
| 忌憚 | きたん kitan | reserve; modesty; hesitation |
| 嗜み | たしなみ tashinami | modesty; restraint; prudence |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 永遠 | えいえん eien | eternity; perpetuity; permanence |
| 遠い | とおい tooi | far; distant; far away |
| 望遠鏡 | ぼうえんきょう bouenkyou | telescope |
| 遠征 | えんせい ensei | (military) expedition; campaign |
| 敬遠 | けいえん keien | pretending to respect (someone) while in fact staying distant; keeping at arm's length; giving a wide berth |
| 配慮 | はいりょ hairyo | consideration; concern; attention |
| 考慮 | こうりょ kouryo | consideration; taking into account |
| 不慮 | ふりょ furyo | unforeseen; unexpected; sudden |
See also: Chinese symbol for “modesty”.
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.