Japanese symbol for “unravel”
解く
ほどく
Romaji: hodoku
to undo; to untie; to unfasten; to unlace
In Japanese, unravel is 解く, read ほどく (hodoku).
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 undo; to untie; to unfasten; to unlace; to unravel; to loosen
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “unravel”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 解ける | ほどける hodokeru | to come loose; to come untied; to come undone |
| 解きほぐす | ときほぐす tokihogusu | to disentangle; to untangle; to unravel |
| 解す | ほぐす hogusu | to disentangle; to untangle; to unravel |
| 解す | ほつす hotsusu | to disentangle; to untangle; to unravel |
| 梳かす | とかす tokasu | to comb out; to brush; to untangle |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 理解 | りかい rikai | understanding; comprehension; appreciation |
| 解決 | かいけつ kaiketsu | settlement; solution; resolution |
| 解説 | かいせつ kaisetsu | explanation; commentary; exposition |
| 解散 | かいさん kaisan | breaking up (a meeting, gathering, etc.); dispersal (e.g. of a crowd) |
| 解放 | かいほう kaihou | release; unleashing; liberation |
| 解除 | かいじょ kaijo | termination (of a contract); cancellation; rescinding |
See also: Chinese symbol for “unravel”.
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.