Japanese symbol for “dirty”
汚い
きたない
Romaji: kitanai
dirty; filthy; foul; unclean
In Japanese, dirty is 汚い, read きたない (kitanai).
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
- adj-i dirty; filthy; foul; unclean
- adj-i disordered; messy; untidy; poor (e.g. handwriting)
- adj-i indecent (language, etc.); dirty; vulgar; coarse
- adj-i dastardly; mean; base; underhanded
- adj-i stingy; greedy
Written forms: 汚い、穢い、汚ない. Readings: きたない.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “dirty”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 難しい | むずかしい muzukashii | dirty; unclean; filthy |
| 卑劣 | ひれつ hiretsu | mean; contemptible; despicable |
| 不潔 | ふけつ fuketsu | unclean; dirty; unsanitary |
| 不浄 | ふじょう fujou | unclean; dirty; impure |
| えげつない | えげつない egetsunai | dirty; vulgar; nasty |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 汚染 | おせん osen | pollution; contamination |
| 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 |
See also: Chinese symbol for “dirty”.
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.