Japanese symbol for “predicting”
卜
ぼく
Romaji: boku
divining; telling a fortune; predicting
In Japanese, predicting is 卜, read ぼく (boku).
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 divining; telling a fortune; predicting
- n choosing; settling; fixing
Kanji and stroke order
divining, fortune-telling, divination or katakana to radical (no. 25)
on: ボク
kun: うらな.う、うらない
kun: うらな.う、うらない
2 strokes
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 占卜 | せんぼく senboku | divination; fortunetelling; soothsaying |
| 売卜 | ばいぼく baiboku | fortunetelling (as an occupation) |
| 卜居 | ぼっきょ bokkyo | choosing a homesite by divination |
| 卜者 | ぼくしゃ bokusha | fortune teller; soothsayer; diviner |
| 卜占 | ぼくせん bokusen | fortune-telling; divination; augury |
| 卜筮 | ぼくぜい bokuzei | fortunetelling; divination |
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.