Japanese symbol for “saltwater”
海水
かいすい
Romaji: kaisui
seawater; saltwater
In Japanese, saltwater is 海水, read かいすい (kaisui).
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 seawater; saltwater
Kanji and stroke order
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 海外 | かいがい kaigai | foreign; abroad; overseas |
| 海岸 | かいがん kaigan | seashore; coast; seaside |
| 海軍 | かいぐん kaigun | navy; naval force |
| 北海道 | ほっかいどう hokkaidou | Hokkaido (island, prefectural-level administrative unit) |
| 海上 | かいじょう kaijou | (on the) sea; surface of the sea |
| 海洋 | かいよう kaiyou | ocean; sea |
| 水着 | みずぎ mizugi | bathing suit; swimsuit; swimmers |
| 水準 | すいじゅん suijun | level; standard |
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.