Japanese symbol for “externalities”

外部性

がいぶせい

Romaji: gaibusei

externalities

In Japanese, externalities is 外部性, read がいぶせい (gaibusei).

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 externalities

Kanji and stroke order

外

outside

on: ガイ、ゲ
kun: そと、ほか、はず.す、はず.れる

5 strokes · JLPT 4

部

section, bureau, dept

on: ブ
kun: -べ

11 strokes · JLPT 2

性

sex, gender, nature

on: セイ、ショウ
kun: さが

8 strokes · JLPT 2

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
海外	かいがい kaigai	foreign; abroad; overseas
外国	がいこく gaikoku	foreign country
以外	いがい igai	excluding; except (for); apart from
外交	がいこう gaikou	diplomacy
意外	いがい igai	unexpected; surprising; unanticipated
外部	がいぶ gaibu	outside (e.g. of a building); exterior
全部	ぜんぶ zenbu	all; entire; whole
部分	ぶぶん bubun	portion; section; part
女性	じょせい josei	woman; female

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.