King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “transition”

Romaji: ikou
transition; changeover; switchover; shift

In Japanese, transition is , read (ikou).

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, vi, vs transition; changeover; switchover; shift
  2. n, vi, vs transfer (of powers, weight, etc.); shift (e.g. of centre of gravity)

Kanji and stroke order

shift, move, change
on: イ
kun: うつ.る、うつ.す
11 strokes · JLPT 2
going, journey, carry out
on: コウ、ギョウ、アン
kun: い.く、ゆ.く、-ゆ.き、-ゆき
6 strokes · JLPT 4

Other Japanese words for “transition”

WordReadingMeaning
へんか henkachange; variation; alteration
すいい suiitransition; change; progress
へんせん hensenchange; transition; vicissitudes
てんい ten'imoving (location, with the times, etc.); change; transition
かわりめ kawarimeturning point; change; transition

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
いどう idoumovement; transfer; migration
いしょく ishokutransplanting (a plant); transplant; grafting
いてん itenmoving; relocation; change of address
いみん iminimmigration; emigration
いじゅう ijuumigration; move; emigration
こうどう koudouaction; conduct; behaviour
おこなう okonauto perform; to do; to conduct oneself
ぎんこう ginkoubank; banking institution

See also: Chinese symbol for “transition”.

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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