King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “brat”

Romaji: kozou
youngster; boy; kid; brat

In Japanese, brat is , read (kozou).

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

  1. n youngster; boy; kid; brat; lad
  2. n young Buddhist monk; young bonze
  3. n young shop-boy; errand boy; apprentice

Kanji and stroke order

little, small
on: ショウ
kun: ちい.さい、こ-、お-、さ-
3 strokes · JLPT 4
Buddhist priest, monk
on: ソウ
13 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “brat”

WordReadingMeaning
がき gakibrat; kid; urchin
わっぱ wappachild; kid; brat
あくどう akudoubad boy; naughty child; brat
チンピラ chinpirabrat; little shit
わる warubad child; naughty child; brat

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
しょうせつ shousetsunovel; story; (work of) fiction
しょうがっこう shougakkouprimary school; elementary school; grade school
しょうがくせい shougakuseielementary school student; primary school student; grade school student
こがた kogatasmall-sized; small-scale; miniature
ちいさい chiisaismall; little; tiny
しゅくしょう shukushoureduction; curtailment; cut
そうりょ souryopriest; monk; bonze
にそう nisouBuddhist nun

See also: Chinese symbol for “brat”.

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.