Japanese symbol for “stopgap”
穴埋め
あなうめ
Romaji: anaume
filling (up) a hole
In Japanese, stopgap is 穴埋め, read あなうめ (anaume).
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, vs, vt filling (up) a hole
- n, vs, vt filling in (for a gap, vacancy, etc.); stopgap; filler (e.g. article)
- n, vs, vt making up (for a loss, damage, etc.); covering (a deficit); compensation
- n fill-in-the-blank activity; cloze test (i.e. text with words removed)
Written forms: 穴埋め、穴うめ. Readings: あなうめ.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “stopgap”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 一時しのぎ | いちじしのぎ ichijishinogi | makeshift; stopgap; temporary expedient |
| 付け焼刃 | つけやきば tsukeyakiba | affectation; pretension; thin veneer |
| その場しのぎ | そのばしのぎ sonobashinogi | stopgap; makeshift; temporary measure |
| 苟且 | こうしょ kousho | stopgap; makeshift; temporary |
| 姑息 | こそく kosoku | makeshift; stopgap |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 墓穴 | ぼけつ boketsu | grave (pit) |
| 落とし穴 | おとしあな otoshiana | pitfall; trap; pit |
| 毛穴 | けあな keana | pore (of the skin) |
| 洞穴 | ほらあな horaana | cave; cavern; den |
| 風穴 | かざあな kazaana | air hole; windhole; air vent |
| 埋める | うめる umeru | to bury (e.g. in the ground) |
| 埋め立て | うめたて umetate | land reclamation; land fill |
| 埋葬 | まいそう maisou | burial |
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.