Japanese symbol for “helpless”
心細い
こころぼそい
Romaji: kokorobosoi
helpless; forlorn; hopeless; unpromising
In Japanese, helpless is 心細い, read こころぼそい (kokorobosoi).
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 helpless; forlorn; hopeless; unpromising; lonely; discouraging
Written forms: 心細い、心ぼそい、こころ細い. Readings: こころぼそい.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “helpless”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 無援 | むえん muen | helpless; unsupporting |
| か弱い | かよわい kayowai | weak; feeble; delicate |
| 無告 | むこく mukoku | helpless; out of resources |
| 頼み少ない | たのみすくない tanomisukunai | helpless |
| 遣る瀬無い | やるせない yarusenai | miserable; wretched; disconsolate |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 中心 | ちゅうしん chuushin | center; centre; middle |
| 心配 | しんぱい shinpai | worry; concern; anxiety |
| 安心 | あんしん anshin | peace of mind; relief; (sense of) security |
| 関心 | かんしん kanshin | concern; interest |
| 心理 | しんり shinri | state of mind; mentality; psychology |
| 心臓 | しんぞう shinzou | heart |
| 詳細 | しょうさい shousai | details; particulars; specifics |
| 細胞 | さいぼう saibou | cell |
See also: Chinese symbol for “helpless”.
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.
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