King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “recognize”

Romaji: mitomeru
to recognize; to recognise; to observe; to notice

In Japanese, recognize is , read (mitomeru).

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. v1, vt to recognize; to recognise; to observe; to notice
  2. v1, vt to deem; to judge; to assess
  3. v1, vt to approve; to deem acceptable; to allow
  4. v1, vt to admit; to accept; to confess (to a charge)
  5. v1, vt to watch steadily; to observe carefully
  6. v1, vt to renown; to give renown to; to appreciate; to acknowledge

Kanji and stroke order

acknowledge, witness, discern
on: ニン
kun: みと.める、したた.める
14 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “recognize”

WordReadingMeaning
みわける miwakeruto distinguish; to recognize; to recognise
かう kauto value (highly); to think highly of; to have a high opinion of
ききわける kikiwakeruto recognize (by sound); to identify; to differentiate (voices, sounds, etc.)
もくする mokusuruto regard (as); to recognize (as); to see as
みおぼえがある mioboegaaruto recognize; to recall; to recollect

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
かくにん kakuninconfirmation; verification; validation
にんしき ninshikirecognition; awareness; perception
しょうにん shouninrecognition; acknowledgement; acknowledgment
みとめ mitomeapproval; acceptance; recognition
こうにん kouninofficial recognition; official approval; certification
にんか ninkaapproval; license; licence

See also: Chinese symbol for “recognize”.

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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