King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “subordinate”

Romaji: meshita
subordinate; subordinates; inferior; inferiors

In Japanese, subordinate is , read (meshita).

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. n subordinate; subordinates; inferior; inferiors; junior

Kanji and stroke order

eye, class, look
on: モク、ボク
kun: め、-め、ま-
5 strokes · JLPT 4
below, down, descend
on: カ、ゲ
kun: した、しも、もと、さ.げる
3 strokes · JLPT 4

Other Japanese words for “subordinate”

WordReadingMeaning
てした teshitasubordinate; underling; henchman
かぶ kabusubordinate (office); good and faithful servant
じゅう juusubordinate; secondary; junior
したまわり shitamawarisubordinate work; menial service; subordinate
ばっか bakkasubordinate; vassal; retainer

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
もくてき mokutekipurpose; goal; aim
もくひょう mokuhyougoal; target; aim
ちゅうもく chuumokunotice; attention; observation
こうもく koumokuitem; heading; category
もくげき mokugekiwitnessing; observing; sighting
だめ dameno good; not serving its purpose; useless
いか ikanot exceeding ...; not more than ...; ... and under
ちか chikaunderground; below the ground

See also: Chinese symbol for “subordinate”.

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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