Japanese symbol for “gruff”
荒々しい
あらあらしい
Romaji: araarashii
rough; wild; rude; harsh
In Japanese, gruff is 荒々しい, read あらあらしい (araarashii).
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 rough; wild; rude; harsh; gruff; violent
Written forms: 荒々しい、荒荒しい. Readings: あらあらしい.
Kanji and stroke order
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 荒野 | こうや kouya | wasteland; wilderness; deserted land |
| 荒れる | あれる areru | to become stormy; to become rough (of the sea) |
| 荒木 | あらき araki | logs in bark; rough wood; unseasoned timber |
| 荒れ | あれ are | stormy weather; tempest; chaps (of skin) |
| 荒らす | あらす arasu | to lay waste; to devastate; to damage |
| 荒い | あらい arai | rough; wild; violent |
See also: Chinese symbol for “gruff”.
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.