Japanese symbol for “phrase”
文句
もんく
Romaji: monku
complaint; grumbling; objection
In Japanese, phrase is 文句, read もんく (monku).
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 complaint; grumbling; objection
- n phrase; words; expression
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “phrase”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 言葉 | ことば kotoba | word; phrase; expression |
| 一句 | いっく ikku | phrase (verse, line) |
| フレーズ | フレーズ fureezu | phrase |
| 句 | く ku | phrase |
| 文節 | ぶんせつ bunsetsu | phrase; clause; basic linguistic unit in Japanese grammar |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 文化 | ぶんか bunka | culture; civilization; civilisation |
| 文字 | もじ moji | letter (of an alphabet); character |
| 注文 | ちゅうもん chuumon | order (for an item) |
| 文書 | ぶんしょ bunsho | document; writing; letter |
| 文章 | ぶんしょう bunshou | writing; composition; essay |
| 論文 | ろんぶん ronbun | thesis; essay; treatise |
| 俳句 | はいく haiku | haiku; 17-mora poem, usu. in 3 lines of 5, 7 and 5 morae |
| 語句 | ごく goku | words and phrases; words |
See also: Chinese symbol for “phrase”.
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.