Japanese symbol for “release”

解放

かいほう

Romaji: kaihou

release; unleashing; liberation; emancipation

In Japanese, release is 解放, read かいほう (kaihou).

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 release; unleashing; liberation; emancipation; setting free
n, vs, vt deallocation (of computer memory) (comp)

Kanji and stroke order

解

unravel, notes, key

on: カイ、ゲ
kun: と.く、と.かす、と.ける、ほど.く

13 strokes · JLPT 2

放

set free, release, fire

on: ホウ
kun: はな.す、-っぱな.し、はな.つ、はな.れる

8 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “release”

Word	Reading	Meaning
発売	はつばい hatsubai	sale; offering for sale; putting on sale
公開	こうかい koukai	opening to the public; making available to the public; exhibiting
釈放	しゃくほう shakuhou	release; liberation; acquittal
開示	かいじ kaiji	release (of information, documents, etc.); disclosure; display
リリース	リリース ririisu	release (of a film, product, etc.); publication

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
理解	りかい rikai	understanding; comprehension; appreciation
解決	かいけつ kaiketsu	settlement; solution; resolution
解説	かいせつ kaisetsu	explanation; commentary; exposition
解散	かいさん kaisan	breaking up (a meeting, gathering, etc.); dispersal (e.g. of a crowd)
解除	かいじょ kaijo	termination (of a contract); cancellation; rescinding
放送	ほうそう housou	broadcasting; broadcast; program
開放	かいほう kaihou	opening (a door, window, etc.); leaving open
放題	ほうだい houdai	(doing) as one pleases; to one's heart's content; letting (something) go unchecked

See also: Chinese symbol for “release”.

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.