Japanese symbol for “snaking”

蛇行

だこう

Romaji: dakou

meandering; snaking; zigzagging

In Japanese, snaking is 蛇行, read だこう (dakou).

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, vi, vs meandering; snaking; zigzagging

Written forms: 蛇行. Readings: だこう、じゃこう.

Kanji and stroke order

蛇

snake, serpent, hard drinker

on: ジャ、ダ、イ、ヤ
kun: へび

11 strokes · JLPT 1

行

going, journey, carry out

on: コウ、ギョウ、アン
kun: い.く、ゆ.く、-ゆ.き、-ゆき

6 strokes · JLPT 4

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
蛇口	じゃぐち jaguchi	faucet; tap
大蛇	だいじゃ daija	big snake; (large) serpent
蛇の目	じゃのめ janome	bull's-eye (pattern); double ring (pattern)
蛇足	だそく dasoku	redundancy; superfluity; useless addition
行動	こうどう koudou	action; conduct; behaviour
行う	おこなう okonau	to perform; to do; to conduct oneself
銀行	ぎんこう ginkou	bank; banking institution
行き	いき iki	the way there; outbound leg; outbound trip

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.