Japanese symbol for “servile”

卑屈

ひくつ

Romaji: hikutsu

servile; subservient; obsequious; slavish

In Japanese, servile is 卑屈, read ひくつ (hikutsu).

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

adj-na, n servile; subservient; obsequious; slavish; self-abasing; grovelling

Kanji and stroke order

卑

lowly, base, vile

on: ヒ
kun: いや.しい、いや.しむ、いや.しめる

9 strokes · JLPT 1

屈

yield, bend, flinch

on: クツ
kun: かが.む、かが.める

8 strokes · JLPT 1

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
卑劣	ひれつ hiretsu	mean; contemptible; despicable
卑怯	ひきょう hikyou	cowardly; craven
男尊女卑	だんそんじょひ dansonjohi	male domination of women; male chauvinism; subjection of women
卑下	ひげ hige	self-abasement; self-depreciation; humility
卑しい	いやしい iyashii	lowborn; humble; lowly
理屈	りくつ rikutsu	theory; reason; logic
窮屈	きゅうくつ kyuukutsu	narrow; tight; cramped
退屈	たいくつ taikutsu	tedious; boring; dull

See also: Chinese symbol for “servile”.

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.