Japanese symbol for “sow”
蒔く
まく
Romaji: maku
to sow; to plant; to seed
In Japanese, sow is 蒔く, read まく (maku).
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
- v5k, vt to sow; to plant; to seed
- v5k, vt to sow (the seeds of; e.g. conflict)
- v5k, vt to sprinkle (gold or silver powder on lacquerware)
Written forms: 蒔く、播く. Readings: まく.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “sow”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 施す | ほどこす hodokosu | to sow; to seed; to scatter (e.g. fertilizer) |
| 蒔き付ける | まきつける makitsukeru | to sow (seeds) |
| 雌豚 | めぶた mebuta | female pig; sow |
| メス豚 | めすぶた mesubuta | female pig; sow |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 蒔絵 | まきえ makie | gold or silver lacquer; lacquer decoration sprinkled with metal powder |
| 高蒔絵 | たかまきえ takamakie | takamaki-e; embossed gilt lacquerwork |
| 麦蒔 | むぎまき mugimaki | wheat planting |
| 蒔き付け | まきつけ makitsuke | sowing (seeds) |
| 麦蒔き | むぎまき mugimaki | sowing wheat or barley |
See also: Chinese symbol for “sow”.
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.