Japanese symbol for “grope”

弄る

まさぐる

Romaji: masaguru

to grope; to feel around (in one's pocket, bag, etc.)

In Japanese, grope is 弄る, read まさぐる (masaguru).

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

v5r, vt to grope; to feel around (in one's pocket, bag, etc.)

Kanji and stroke order

弄

play with, tamper, trifle with

on: ロウ、ル
kun: いじく.る、ろう.する、いじ.る、ひねく.る

7 strokes

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
翻弄	ほんろう honrou	having at one's mercy; trifling with; toying with
愚弄	ぐろう gurou	mockery; derision; ridicule
弄り	いじり ijiri	meddling; fumbling; fondling
弄ぶ	もてあそぶ moteasobu	to play with (a toy, one's hair, etc.); to fiddle with

See also: Chinese symbol for “grope”.

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.