King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “phonetics”

Romaji: on'ingaku
phonetics; phonology

In Japanese, phonetics is , read (on'ingaku).

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 phonetics; phonology (ling)

Kanji and stroke order

sound, noise
on: オン、イン、-ノン
kun: おと、ね
9 strokes · JLPT 3
rhyme, elegance, tone
on: イン
19 strokes · JLPT 1
study, learning, science
on: ガク
kun: まな.ぶ
8 strokes · JLPT 4

Other Japanese words for “phonetics”

WordReadingMeaning
おんせいがく onseigakuphonetics
はつおんがく hatsuongakuphonetics; phonology
フォネティックス fonetikkusuphonetics

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
おんがく ongakumusic
おんせい onseivoice; speech
ろくおん rokuon(audio) recording
ほんね honnereal intention; motive; true opinion
そうおん souonnoise; din
はつおん hatsuonpronunciation
よいん yoinreverberation; swelling (of a hymn); trailing note
いんりつ inritsumetre (of a poem); meter; rhythm
がっこう gakkouschool

See also: Chinese symbol for “phonetics”.

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.