Japanese symbol for “pondering”
思案
しあん
Romaji: shian
careful thought; consideration; deliberation; reflection
In Japanese, pondering is 思案, read しあん (shian).
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, vs, vt careful thought; consideration; deliberation; reflection; rumination; pondering
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “pondering”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 長考 | ちょうこう choukou | thinking (about a matter) for a long time; contemplating for a long time; lengthy consideration |
| 反芻 | はんすう hansuu | turning over in one's mind; thinking over (something); pondering |
| 思惟 | しい shii | using wisdom to get to the bottom of things; focusing one's mind; deep contemplation |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 思う | おもう omou | to think; to consider; to believe |
| 思い | おもい omoi | thought |
| 思想 | しそう shisou | thought; idea; ideology |
| 思い出 | おもいで omoide | memories; recollections; reminiscence |
| 不思議 | ふしぎ fushigi | wonderful; marvelous; strange |
| 思わず | おもわず omowazu | unconsciously; involuntarily; instinctively |
| 提案 | ていあん teian | proposal; proposition; suggestion |
| 案内 | あんない annai | guidance; leading (the way); showing around |
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.