Glossary
Kannuki
The bolt of a gate, borrowed as a rope term. One crossing pass that suddenly makes a loose bundle of wraps stay put.
What is kannuki?
Kannuki (閂) is the Japanese word for a cinch: a rope pass across a bundle of wraps to tighten it and hold it in place. The word literally means the bolt or crossbar of a gate. In the West this exact pass is simply called a cinch, and on this site that gets the full explanation of technique and safety.
| Japanese | 閂, pronounced kannuki: the bolt of a gate. The character is 門 (gate) with a stroke through it for the bar |
| English term | cinch, with its own page: cinch |
| Also known as | tome nawa (止め縄, “stop rope”), shibori nawa; in the West, the cinch |
| What it does | tightens a bundle of wraps, holds them together, and keeps them apart |
| Where you see it | the double column tie and the arm bundle on the back |
| Biggest pitfall | the pass tightens after the fact, so what looked loose is suddenly snug |
Where the word kannuki comes from
Kannuki isn’t a rope word by origin. The character 閂 is a gate (門) with a bar through it, and it stands for the bolt that holds double doors shut. That image matches exactly what the pass does: like a bolt, the kannuki lays itself across the direction of the wraps and locks them down. The rope publisher RebornRopes gives the Japanese alternative tome nawa (止め縄), literally “stop rope.”
Why the kannuki matters
A bundle of wraps without a kannuki is a band that sags apart on its own. The kannuki turns those loose passes into a single whole that stays put, and it separates two wrists, say, so they don’t slide toward each other. For you, a good kannuki means a tie feels solid without one pass cutting into your skin. There’s a price: the kannuki pulls the wraps toward each other, so a band that lay comfortably gets tighter than you expect. What that means for safety, and why you check the fingers after the cinch, is on the page about the cinch.
Where this fits on this site
If you want to feel how ties like this sit without having to know the technique yourself, you can do that quietly during a BDSM date. That page explains how I build up an evening with rope and what we go over beforehand.
Sources
- 閂 (kannuki). Wiktionary. Provides the meaning of 閂 as the heavy, usually wooden crossbar laid across double doors or gates, and the make-up of the character from 門 (gate) with a stroke for the bar.
Related terms
Kannuki is the Japanese word for what the West calls a cinch; that page covers the technique and the safety in the most depth.
- Cinch. The same concept from Western rope language, with the safety side included.
- Friction. The blocking pass that holds the rope in place once a kannuki is drawn tight, and does it without a knot.
- Double column tie. The tie in which the kannuki keeps two columns apart.
- Nawa. The Japanese word for the rope the kannuki is a pass of.
- Shibari. The practice in which the kannuki turns up as a building block.
Frequently asked questions
Three questions about the kannuki.
What is kannuki?
Kannuki (閂) is the Japanese word for a cinch: a rope pass across a bundle of wraps that tightens the bundle and holds it in place. The word literally means the bolt of a gate. You see the kannuki in a double column tie, among others.
Who can you turn to with questions about kannuki?
Victor, a gigolo with twenty-five years of experience in BDSM and trained as a psychotherapist. How tight a tie feels and where the rope does and doesn’t run, he goes over with you beforehand. Ask your question through the contact form, or first come chat for free.
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I'm Victor. How tight something sits and where the rope runs is exactly what I go over with someone beforehand. Bring me your question whenever it suits you. It costs nothing and there are no strings, and I'll message you back at your ease.