Japanese symbol for “ploy”

権謀

けんぼう

Romaji: kenbou

scheme; stratagem; ploy

In Japanese, ploy is 権謀, read けんぼう (kenbou).

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 scheme; stratagem; ploy

Kanji and stroke order

権

authority, power, rights

on: ケン、ゴン
kun: おもり、かり、はか.る

15 strokes · JLPT 2

謀

conspire, cheat, impose on

on: ボウ、ム
kun: はか.る、たばか.る、はかりごと

16 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “ploy”

Word	Reading	Meaning
詭策	きさく kisaku	ruse; ploy; trick

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
権利	けんり kenri	right; privilege
政権	せいけん seiken	(political) administration; political power
権力	けんりょく kenryoku	(political) power; authority; influence
権限	けんげん kengen	power; authority; jurisdiction
人権	じんけん jinken	human rights; civil liberties
権威	けんい ken'i	authority; power; influence
無謀	むぼう mubou	reckless; thoughtless; rash
陰謀	いんぼう inbou	plot; intrigue; scheme

See also: Chinese symbol for “ploy”.

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.