Japanese symbol for “motorway”
高速
こうそく
Romaji: kousoku
high-speed; rapid; express
In Japanese, motorway is 高速, read こうそく (kousoku).
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
- adj-na, adj-no, n high-speed; rapid; express
- n highway; freeway; expressway; motorway
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “motorway”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 高速道路 | こうそくどうろ kousokudouro | highway; freeway; expressway |
| 自動車道 | じどうしゃどう jidoushadou | expressway; motorway |
| フリーウェイ | フリーウェイ furiiwei | freeway; expressway; motorway |
| 自動車専用道路 | じどうしゃせんようどうろ jidoushasen'youdouro | expressway; motorway; freeway |
| エクスプレスウェイ | エクスプレスウェイ ekusupuresuwei | expressway; freeway; motorway |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 最高 | さいこう saikou | best; supreme; wonderful |
| 高い | たかい takai | high; tall |
| 高校 | こうこう koukou | senior high school; high school |
| 高校生 | こうこうせい koukousei | senior high school student |
| 高齢 | こうれい kourei | advanced age; old age |
| 速度 | そくど sokudo | speed; velocity; pace |
| 急速 | きゅうそく kyuusoku | rapid (e.g. progress) |
| 加速 | かそく kasoku | acceleration; speeding up |
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.