Japanese symbol for “strangling”

絞殺

こうさつ

Romaji: kousatsu

strangling (to death); strangulation

In Japanese, strangling is 絞殺, read こうさつ (kousatsu).

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 strangling (to death); strangulation

Kanji and stroke order

絞

strangle, constrict, wring

on: コウ
kun: しぼ.る、し.める、し.まる

12 strokes · JLPT 1

殺

kill, murder, butcher

on: サツ、サイ、セツ
kun: ころ.す、-ごろ.し、そ.ぐ、あや.める

10 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “strangling”

Word	Reading	Meaning
握りつぶし	にぎりつぶし nigiritsubushi	strangling; throttling; crushing

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
絞り	しぼり shibori	shibori; tie-dye; tie-dyeing
絞る	しぼる shiboru	to wring (towel, rag); to squeeze
絞める	しめる shimeru	to strangle; to constrict
絞首刑	こうしゅけい koushukei	death by hanging; execution by hanging
絞り込む	しぼりこむ shiborikomu	to squeeze; to wring out
殺人	さつじん satsujin	murder; homicide; manslaughter
自殺	じさつ jisatsu	suicide
殺す	ころす korosu	to kill; to slay; to murder

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.