King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “reverse”

Romaji: gyaku
reverse; opposite

In Japanese, reverse is , read (gyaku).

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. adj-na, adj-no, n reverse; opposite
  2. adj-na, n converse (of a hypothesis, etc.)
  3. n-pref inverse (function) (math)

Kanji and stroke order

inverted, reverse, opposite
on: ギャク、ゲキ
kun: さか、さか.さ、さか.らう
9 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “reverse”

WordReadingMeaning
うらがわ uragawathe reverse (side); back (side); other side
はいぼく haibokudefeat; loss; reverse
はんたい hantaireverse; opposite; inverse
うらはら uraharaopposite; reverse; contrary
うらめん uramenback (side); reverse

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
さかさ sakasainverted; upside down; reversed
ぎゃくてん gyakutenreversal (of a situation); turnaround; turnabout
はんぎゃく hangyakutreason; treachery; mutiny
ぎゃっきょう gyakkyouadverse circumstances; unfortunate situation; adversity
ぎゃくもどり gyakumodoriretrogression; reversal; relapse
さからう sakarauto go against; to oppose; to disobey

See also: Chinese symbol for “reverse”.

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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