Japanese symbol for “vehicle”
車両
しゃりょう
Romaji: sharyou
(wheeled) vehicle; car; (railroad) car; (railway) carriage
In Japanese, vehicle is 車両, read しゃりょう (sharyou).
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
- n (wheeled) vehicle; car; (railroad) car; (railway) carriage; rolling stock
Written forms: 車両、車輌、車輛. Readings: しゃりょう.
Kanji and stroke order
both, old Japanese coin, counter for carriages (e.g., in a train)
on: リョウ
kun: てる、ふたつ
kun: てる、ふたつ
6 strokes · JLPT 2
Other Japanese words for “vehicle”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 車 | くるま kuruma | car; automobile; vehicle |
| 乗り物 | のりもの norimono | vehicle; conveyance; (means of) transport |
| 車 | しゃ sha | car; vehicle; van |
| 駕 | が ga | vehicle; horse-drawn carriage |
| ビークル | ビークル biikuru | vehicle |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 電車 | でんしゃ densha | train; electric train |
| 自動車 | じどうしゃ jidousha | car; automobile; motorcar |
| 自転車 | じてんしゃ jitensha | bicycle; bike |
| 列車 | れっしゃ ressha | train; railway train |
| 駐車 | ちゅうしゃ chuusha | parking (a vehicle) |
| 両親 | りょうしん ryoushin | parents; both parents |
| 両方 | りょうほう ryouhou | both; both sides; both parties |
| 両手 | りょうて ryoute | both hands; both arms |
See also: Chinese symbol for “vehicle”.
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.