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Kanji for Queen
The kanji most commonly used for "Queen" are 后、妃.
后
Kanji that mean Queen
Japanese splits “queen” by how the crown was acquired. 女王 (joō) — “woman king” — is the queen regnant, a ruler in her own right: Queen Elizabeth was 女王, and so is the queen of playing cards and chess. It is a word of two characters rather than one, because 王 alone defaults to a male king.
后 (kōgō’s 后) is the empress-consort: 皇后 is the title of the Japanese empress, the emperor’s wife. The character originally meant “sovereign” outright — it faces the opposite way from 司, its mirror — and settled into the consort’s throne. 妃 (hi) is the princess-consort or queen-consort one step down: 王妃 is a king’s wife, and imperial princesses by marriage carry 妃 in their titles.
So: ruling queen 女王, empress 皇后, royal wife 王妃 — three thrones English shares one word between.
Words using Queen kanji
Everyday Japanese vocabulary built from the characters above.
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皇后
こうごう
empress (consort)
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王妃
おうひ
queen (consort); empress (consort)
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皇太后
こうたいごう
Empress Dowager; Queen Mother
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皇太子妃
こうたいしひ
crown princess
Before you use Queen kanji
There is no single kanji that means "queen regnant" — 女王 is the word, and it reads plainly and well. 后 or 妃 alone read as "consort", which may not be the sovereignty you intended. For the feeling rather than the title, 姫 (princess) or 華 (splendour) are single characters that carry regal grace.