King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “straighten”

Romaji: naosu
to repair; to mend; to fix; to correct (a mistake, bad habit, etc.)

In Japanese, straighten is , read (naosu).

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

  1. v5s, vt to repair; to mend; to fix; to correct (a mistake, bad habit, etc.); to put right; to restore
  2. v5s, vt to change; to alter; to convert; to translate
  3. v5s, vt to put back; to put away
  4. v5s, vt to cure; to heal
  5. v5s, vt to move up; to promote
  6. suf, v5s to do over again; to redo

Kanji and stroke order

straightaway, honesty, frankness
on: チョク、ジキ、ジカ
kun: ただ.ちに、なお.す、-なお.す、なお.る
8 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “straighten”

WordReadingMeaning
のばす nobasuto straighten; to smooth out
ととのえる totonoeruto put in order; to arrange; to tidy up
ただす tadasuto straighten (one's posture, collar, etc.); to adjust
ためる tameruto straighten; to bend into shape
しわをのばす shiwaonobasuto smooth out; to straighten; to relax

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
ちょくせつ chokusetsudirect; immediate; personal
しょうじき shoujikihonest; frank; candid
ちょくご chokugoimmediately following
ちょくぜん chokuzenjust before; just prior to
すなお sunaoobedient; meek; docile
ただちに tadachiniat once; immediately; right away

See also: Chinese symbol for “straighten”.

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.

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