Japanese symbol for “stroking”
撫で撫で
なでなで
Romaji: nadenade
patting; stroking; caressing
In Japanese, stroking is 撫で撫で, read なでなで (nadenade).
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 patting; stroking; caressing
Written forms: 撫で撫で. Readings: なでなで、ナデナデ.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “stroking”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| よしよし | よしよし yoshiyoshi | patting (e.g. a child on the head); stroking; caressing |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 撫でる | なでる naderu | to stroke; to caress; to brush gently |
| 愛撫 | あいぶ aibu | caressing; fondling; (sexual) petting |
| 撫子 | なでしこ nadeshiko | pink (any flower of genus Dianthus, esp. the fringed pink, Dianthus superbus) |
| 大和撫子 | やまとなでしこ yamatonadeshiko | large pink (Dianthus superbus var. longicalycinus) |
| 慰撫 | いぶ ibu | pacification; soothing |
| 鎮撫 | ちんぶ chinbu | pacification; placating |
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.