Japanese symbol for “contamination”
汚染
おせん
Romaji: osen
pollution; contamination
In Japanese, contamination is 汚染, read おせん (osen).
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, vi, vs pollution; contamination
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “contamination”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 公害 | こうがい kougai | pollution; public nuisance; contamination |
| 混入 | こんにゅう konnyuu | mixing; blending; adding |
| 汚濁 | おだく odaku | pollution; contamination; corruption |
| コンタミ | コンタミ kontami | contamination |
| くすみ | くすみ kusumi | dullness (esp. of the skin); lack of luster; dirt |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 汚れ | よごれ yogore | dirt; filth; stain |
| 汚職 | おしょく oshoku | corruption (esp. by a government employee); bribery; graft |
| 汚い | きたない kitanai | dirty; filthy; foul |
| 汚れる | よごれる yogoreru | to get dirty; to become dirty |
| 汚物 | おぶつ obutsu | filth (esp. excrement, feces, urine); muck; waste |
| 感染 | かんせん kansen | infection; contagion; becoming infected |
| 染色 | せんしょく senshoku | dyeing |
| 染める | そめる someru | to dye; to colour; to color |
See also: Chinese symbol for “contamination”.
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.