King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “hopelessness”

Romaji: zetsubou
despair; hopelessness

In Japanese, hopelessness is , read (zetsubou).

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

  1. adj-no, n, vi despair; hopelessness

Kanji and stroke order

discontinue, sever, cut off
on: ゼツ
kun: た.える、た.やす、た.つ
12 strokes · JLPT 2
ambition, full moon, hope
on: ボウ、モウ
kun: のぞ.む、もち
11 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “hopelessness”

WordReadingMeaning
やみ yamibewilderment; despair; hopelessness
かいなし kainashiworthlessness; uselessness; hopelessness

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
ぜったい zettaiabsolutely; definitely; unconditionally
ぜっこう zekkoubest; ideal; perfect
ちゅうぜつ chuuzetsuabortion
ぜつめつ zetsumetsuextinction; extermination
ぜっさん zessanhigh praise; great admiration; acclaim
きぼう kibouhope; wish; aspiration
ようぼう youboudemand for; request
のぞむ nozomuto desire; to want; to wish for

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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