King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “swordsman”

Romaji: kenshi
swordsman; swordswoman; fencer

In Japanese, swordsman is , read (kenshi).

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 swordsman; swordswoman; fencer

Kanji and stroke order

sabre, sword, blade
on: ケン
kun: つるぎ
10 strokes · JLPT 1
gentleman, scholar, samurai
on: シ
kun: さむらい
3 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “swordsman”

WordReadingMeaning
けんじゅつしゃ kenjutsushafencer; swordsman
けんじゅつつかい kenjutsutsukaifencer; swordsman

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
しんけん shinkenserious; earnest
けんどう kendoukendo; Japanese martial art using bamboo swords
とうけん toukensword; dagger; knife
じゅうけん juukenbayonet
けんごう kengougreat swordsman; master fencer
べんごし bengoshilawyer; attorney
どうし doushifellow; mutual; companion
はかせ hakaseexpert; learned person

See also: Chinese symbol for “swordsman”.

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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