King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “pious”

Romaji: keiken
pious; devout

In Japanese, pious is , read (keiken).

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. adj-na, n pious; devout

Written forms: . Readings: .

Kanji and stroke order

awe, respect, honor
on: ケイ、キョウ
kun: うやま.う
12 strokes · JLPT 2
respect
on: ケン
kun: つつし.む
10 strokes

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
そんけい sonkeirespect; esteem; reverence
けいい keiirespect; honour; honor
けいえん keienpretending to respect (someone) while in fact staying distant; keeping at arm's length; giving a wide berth
けいご keigohonorific; term of respect; polite expression
けいろう keirourespect for the aged
けいしょう keishouhonorific title; honorific term of address
ふけいけん fukeikenimpiety; irreverence
けいけんしゅぎ keikenshugiPietism

See also: Chinese symbol for “pious”.

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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