Japanese symbol for “charcoal”
炭
すみ
Romaji: sumi
charcoal
In Japanese, charcoal is 炭, read すみ (sumi).
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
- n charcoal
- n charred remains
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “charcoal”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 木炭 | もくたん mokutan | charcoal |
| チャコール | チャコール chakooru | charcoal |
| からけし | からけし karakeshi | charcoal |
| 油石 | あぶらいし aburaishi | coal; charcoal |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 石炭 | せきたん sekitan | coal |
| 炭酸 | たんさん tansan | carbonic acid |
| 炭素 | たんそ tanso | carbon (C) |
| 炭鉱 | たんこう tankou | coal mine; (coal) pit; colliery |
| 炭水化物 | たんすいかぶつ tansuikabutsu | carbohydrate |
| 木炭 | もくたん mokutan | charcoal |
See also: Chinese symbol for “charcoal”.
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.