Japanese symbol for “straying”

迷走

めいそう

Romaji: meisou

straying; wandering (off course)

In Japanese, straying is 迷走, read めいそう (meisou).

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 straying; wandering (off course)

Kanji and stroke order

迷

astray, be perplexed, in doubt

on: メイ
kun: まよ.う

9 strokes · JLPT 2

走

run

on: ソウ
kun: はし.る

7 strokes · JLPT 3

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
迷惑	めいわく meiwaku	trouble; bother; annoyance
迷う	まよう mayou	to lose one's way; to get lost; to go astray
迷子	まいご maigo	lost child; lost person; stray child
低迷	ていめい teimei	hanging low (of clouds)
迷い	まよい mayoi	hesitation; bewilderment; perplexity
迷路	めいろ meiro	maze; labyrinth
走る	はしる hashiru	to run
逃走	とうそう tousou	flight; desertion; escape

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.