King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “opening”

Romaji: kaihou
opening (a door, window, etc.); leaving open

In Japanese, opening is , read (kaihou).

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. n, vs, vt opening (a door, window, etc.); leaving open
  2. n, vs, vt opening up (e.g. to the public); allowing (public) access

Kanji and stroke order

open, unfold, unseal
on: カイ
kun: ひら.く、ひら.き、-びら.き、ひら.ける
12 strokes · JLPT 3
set free, release, fire
on: ホウ
kun: はな.す、-っぱな.し、はな.つ、はな.れる
8 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “opening”

WordReadingMeaning
かいさい kaisaiholding (a conference, exhibition, etc.); opening; hosting (e.g. the Olympics)
はじめ hajimebeginning; start; outset
あな anahole; opening; orifice
ひらき hirakiopening; gap
じょばん jobanopening (in a game of go, chess, etc.)

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
かいさい kaisaiholding (a conference, exhibition, etc.); opening; hosting (e.g. the Olympics)
こうかい koukaiopening to the public; making available to the public; exhibiting
かいはつ kaihatsudevelopment; cultivation; application
かいし kaishistart; commencement; beginning
てんかい tenkaidevelopment; evolution; progression
ほうそう housoubroadcasting; broadcast; program
かいほう kaihourelease; unleashing; liberation
ほうだい houdai(doing) as one pleases; to one's heart's content; letting (something) go unchecked

See also: Chinese symbol for “opening”.

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.

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