Japanese symbol for “reversal”
逆転
ぎゃくてん
Romaji: gyakuten
reversal (of a situation); turnaround; turnabout; turning the tables
In Japanese, reversal is 逆転, read ぎゃくてん (gyakuten).
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 reversal (of a situation); turnaround; turnabout; turning the tables; sudden change; comeback
- n, vi, vs reversal (of direction of rotation)
Written forms: 逆転、逆点. Readings: ぎゃくてん.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “reversal”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 返し | かえし kaeshi | reversal; return |
| 逆戻り | ぎゃくもどり gyakumodori | retrogression; reversal; relapse |
| 破棄 | はき haki | reversal (of an original ruling on appeal); quashing |
| 反転 | はんてん hanten | turning around (the other way); reversal (of direction, course, etc.); inversion |
| 転倒 | てんとう tentou | inversion; reversal; turning upside-down |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 逆さ | さかさ sakasa | inverted; upside down; reversed |
| 反逆 | はんぎゃく hangyaku | treason; treachery; mutiny |
| 逆境 | ぎゃっきょう gyakkyou | adverse circumstances; unfortunate situation; adversity |
| 逆戻り | ぎゃくもどり gyakumodori | retrogression; reversal; relapse |
| 逆らう | さからう sakarau | to go against; to oppose; to disobey |
| 運転 | うんてん unten | operation (of a machine); running; working |
| 自転車 | じてんしゃ jitensha | bicycle; bike |
| 回転 | かいてん kaiten | rotation; revolution; turn |
See also: Chinese symbol for “reversal”.
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.