Japanese symbol for “nostrils”
小鼻
こばな
Romaji: kobana
nostrils; wings of the nose
In Japanese, nostrils is 小鼻, read こばな (kobana).
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 nostrils; wings of the nose
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “nostrils”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 鼻口 | びこう bikou | nostril; nostrils; naris |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 小説 | しょうせつ shousetsu | novel; story; (work of) fiction |
| 小学校 | しょうがっこう shougakkou | primary school; elementary school; grade school |
| 小学生 | しょうがくせい shougakusei | elementary school student; primary school student; grade school student |
| 小型 | こがた kogata | small-sized; small-scale; miniature |
| 小さい | ちいさい chiisai | small; little; tiny |
| 縮小 | しゅくしょう shukushou | reduction; curtailment; cut |
| 鼻水 | はなみず hanamizu | nasal mucus; dripping nose; snot |
| 鼻血 | はなぢ hanaji | nosebleed |
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.