Get some books on Japanese Kanji symbols..most will have the english translation underneath it. Google it etc. I would compare it several times to make sure they are the same.

With Kanji (the japanese) the different styles will attatch different connotations to the word, especially if it's just one word. The other thing to bear in mind that most kanji are words and part of words at the same. put the kanji for "sun" and "moon" together, you have "bright". It's a classic one to see "love" and "honour" kanji (without the and between them) which on a woman means "arranged marriage" and is often put on the brides carriage before such a marriage.

I would say the only way to be sure is to talk to a native speaker. Go to your local college / adult education /language centre and ask if they do japanese or chinese language courses, then talk to the teachers.