Japanese symbol for “flimsy”
薄っぺら
うすっぺら
Romaji: usuppera
very thin; flimsy; cheap; shallow
In Japanese, flimsy is 薄っぺら, read うすっぺら (usuppera).
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-na, n very thin; flimsy; cheap; shallow
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “flimsy”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ヘロヘロ | ヘロヘロ herohero | completely exhausted; dog-tired; dreadfully weary |
| ペラペラ | ペラペラ perapera | thin (paper, cloth, etc.); flimsy; weak |
| 薄っぺらい | うすっぺらい usupperai | very thin; flimsy; cheap |
| 根拠薄弱 | こんきょはくじゃく konkyohakujaku | unsubstantiated; flimsy |
| ヘラヘラ | ヘラヘラ herahera | thin (paper, cloth, etc.); flimsy |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 薄い | うすい usui | thin (of an object) |
| 薄暗い | うすぐらい usugurai | dim; gloomy |
| 希薄 | きはく kihaku | thin (air); weak (liquid); dilute |
| 軽薄 | けいはく keihaku | frivolous; flippant; superficial |
| 薄着 | うすぎ usugi | being lightly dressed |
| 品薄 | しなうす shinausu | shortage of stock; scarcity of goods; being in short supply |
See also: Chinese symbol for “flimsy”.
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.