Japanese symbol for “shoulder”
肩
かた
Romaji: kata
shoulder
In Japanese, shoulder is 肩, read かた (kata).
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 shoulder
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “shoulder”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 負う | おう ou | to carry on one's back; to bear; to shoulder |
| 担ぐ | かつぐ katsugu | to shoulder; to carry on one's shoulder |
| 担う | になう ninau | to carry on one's shoulder; to shoulder; to bear |
| 路肩 | ろかた rokata | shoulder (of a road); berm |
| 縁 | へり heri | edge (of a river, woods, etc.); shoulder (of a road) |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 肩書き | かたがき katagaki | title (e.g. Doctor, Professor, Lord); job title; position (in a company) |
| 肩代わり | かたがわり katagawari | taking over (another's debt, work); shouldering someone else's burden; subrogation |
| 肩こり | かたこり katakori | stiff neck; stiff shoulders |
| 肩身 | かたみ katami | shoulders; body |
| 路肩 | ろかた rokata | shoulder (of a road); berm |
| 肩幅 | かたはば katahaba | shoulder width (breadth) |
See also: Chinese symbol for “shoulder”.
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.