Japanese symbol for “strum”
弾く
はじく
Romaji: hajiku
to flip; to snap; to flick
In Japanese, strum is 弾く, read はじく (hajiku).
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
- v5k, vt to flip; to snap; to flick
- v5k, vt to repel
- v5k, vt to use (an abacus); to calculate
- v5k, vt to strum; to pluck the strings (of a guitar, etc.)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “strum”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| かき鳴らす | かきならす kakinarasu | to strum (an instrument); to thrum; to pluck |
| つま弾く | つまびく tsumabiku | to strum; to pluck the strings (of a guitar) |
| 弾き鳴らす | ひきならす hikinarasu | to pluck the strings of an instrument; to strum |
| かき撫でる | かきなでる kakinaderu | to strum (a stringed instrument); to pluck |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 爆弾 | ばくだん bakudan | bomb |
| 弾圧 | だんあつ dan'atsu | oppression; suppression; pressure |
| 弾薬 | だんやく dan'yaku | ammunition; ammo |
| 糾弾 | きゅうだん kyuudan | censure; denunciation; (verbal) attack |
| 弾道 | だんどう dandou | trajectory; line of fire |
| 銃弾 | じゅうだん juudan | bullet (from a rifle) |
See also: Chinese symbol for “strum”.
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.