Japanese symbol for “sir”
卿
きょう
Romaji: kyou
Lord; Sir
In Japanese, sir is 卿, read きょう (kyou).
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
- suf Lord; Sir
- n state minister (under the ritsuryō system or Meiji Grand Council system)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “sir”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 旦那 | だんな danna | sir; boss; master |
| サー | サー saa | Sir |
| 君 | くん kun | sir; madam |
| 公 | こう kou | Sir; Lord |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 枢機卿 | すうききょう suukikyou | cardinal (Catholic Church) |
| 公卿 | くぎょう kugyou | high-ranking court noble; senior court official; kugyō |
| 卿相 | けいしょう keishou | court nobles and state ministers |
| 六卿 | りくけい rikukei | six ministers (of the six Zhou dynasty Chinese ministries) |
| 九卿 | きゅうけい kyuukei | nine ministers (of the ancient Chinese government) |
| 御三卿 | ごさんきょう gosankyou | three secondary Tokugawa branch families (Tayasu, Shimizu, and Hitotsubashi) |
See also: Chinese symbol for “sir”.
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.