Japanese symbol for “retreating”

却行

きゃっこう

Romaji: kyakkou

drawing back; stepping back; retreating

In Japanese, retreating is 却行, read きゃっこう (kyakkou).

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 drawing back; stepping back; retreating

Kanji and stroke order

却

instead, on the contrary, rather

on: キャク
kun: かえ.って、しりぞ.く、しりぞ.ける

7 strokes · JLPT 1

行

going, journey, carry out

on: コウ、ギョウ、アン
kun: い.く、ゆ.く、-ゆ.き、-ゆき

6 strokes · JLPT 4

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
売却	ばいきゃく baikyaku	selling off; disposal by sale; sale
却下	きゃっか kyakka	rejection; dismissal
冷却	れいきゃく reikyaku	cooling; refrigeration
返却	へんきゃく henkyaku	return (of something borrowed or entrusted); returning; giving back
棄却	ききゃく kikyaku	rejection; dismissal; turning down
焼却	しょうきゃく shoukyaku	incineration; destruction by fire
行動	こうどう koudou	action; conduct; behaviour
行う	おこなう okonau	to perform; to do; to conduct oneself

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.