Japanese symbol for “rambling”
彷徨
ほうこう
Romaji: houkou
wandering; rambling; roaming
In Japanese, rambling is 彷徨, read ほうこう (houkou).
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, vi, vs wandering; rambling; roaming
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “rambling”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 漫歩 | まんぽ manpo | rambling; sauntering; strolling |
| 漫然 | まんぜん manzen | aimless; rambling; desultory |
| ぶらぶら | ぶらぶら burabura | (walking) leisurely; aimlessly; strolling |
| 移動性 | いどうせい idousei | mobility; migration; rambling |
| 取り留めのない | とりとめのない toritomenonai | incoherent; wandering; vague |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 彷彿 | ほうふつ houfutsu | (bearing a) close resemblance; vivid reminder (e.g. of the past) |
| 彷徨く | うろつく urotsuku | to loiter; to hang around; to wander around |
| 彷徨う | さまよう samayou | to loiter; to putter; to prowl |
| 水天彷彿 | すいてんほうふつ suitenhoufutsu | the sky and water merging into one; seamless merging of the sea and the sky |
| 彷徨える | さまよえる samayoeru | roaming; loitering; wandering |
| 彷徨変異 | ほうこうへんい houkouhen'i | fluctuation; environmental variation |
See also: Chinese symbol for “rambling”.
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.