Chinese symbol for “dirt”
污垢
wū gòu
dirt; filth; grime
The closest CC-CEDICT match for dirt is 污垢 (wū gòu), defined as: dirt; filth; grime.
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.
Characters and stroke order
Other Chinese words for “dirt”
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 垢 | gòu | dirt; disgrace |
| 埃 | āi | dust; dirt |
| 泥垢 | ní gòu | dirt; grime |
| 污 | wū | dirty; filthy |
| 尘 (塵) | chén | dust; dirt |
Related words
Other words that share a character with 污垢.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 污染 | wū rǎn | (lit. and fig.) to pollute; to contaminate |
| 贪污 (貪污) | tān wū | to be corrupt; corruption |
| 污水 | wū shuǐ | sewage |
| 污染物 | wū rǎn wù | pollutant |
| 环境污染 (環境污染) | huán jìng wū rǎn | environmental pollution |
| 污点 (污點) | wū diǎn | stain; taint |
| 蓬头垢面 (蓬頭垢面) | péng tóu gòu miàn | messy hair and dirty face; bad appearance |
| 水垢 | shuǐ gòu | limescale |
See also: Japanese symbol for “dirt”.
Data: CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0); Unihan Database (Unicode License v3); Make Me a Hanzi (Arphic Public License (graphics.txt); LGPL-3.0-or-later (dictionary.txt)); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.