King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “dim”

Romaji: usugurai
dim; gloomy

In Japanese, dim is , read (usugurai).

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. adj-i dim; gloomy

Written forms: . Readings: .

Kanji and stroke order

dilute, thin, weak (tea)
on: ハク
kun: うす.い、うす-、-うす、うす.める
16 strokes · JLPT 2
darkness, disappear, shade
on: アン
kun: くら.い、くら.む、くれ.る
13 strokes · JLPT 3

Other Japanese words for “dim”

WordReadingMeaning
もうろう mouroudim; hazy; vague
うす usulight (e.g color, fabric); faint; pale
かすか kasukafaint; dim; weak
ほうふつ houfutsudim; faint; vague
ふめいりょう fumeiryouunclear; indistinct; obscure

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
うすい usuithin (of an object)
きはく kihakuthin (air); weak (liquid); dilute
けいはく keihakufrivolous; flippant; superficial
うすぎ usugibeing lightly dressed
しなうす shinausushortage of stock; scarcity of goods; being in short supply
あんさつ ansatsuassassination
まっくら makkurapitch-dark; pitch-black; completely dark
あんごう angoucode; password; cipher

See also: Chinese symbol for “dim”.

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.

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