Japanese symbol for “impurity”
汚れ
けがれ
Romaji: kegare
uncleanness; impurity; defilement
In Japanese, impurity is 汚れ, read けがれ (kegare).
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
- n uncleanness; impurity; defilement
- n disgrace; shame; stain; blot; corruption; depravity
- n uncleanliness from contact with death, pregnancy, menstruation, etc.
Written forms: 汚れ、穢れ. Readings: けがれ.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “impurity”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 塵 | じん jin | defilement; impurity; affliction |
| 濁り | にごり nigori | impurity (of the world, one's heart, etc.) |
| 混ざり物 | まざりもの mazarimono | impurity |
| 夾雑物 | きょうざつぶつ kyouzatsubutsu | foreign element; impurity; admixture |
| 混じり物 | まじりもの majirimono | mixture; impurity; adulteration |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 汚染 | おせん osen | pollution; contamination |
| 汚職 | おしょく oshoku | corruption (esp. by a government employee); bribery; graft |
| 汚い | きたない kitanai | dirty; filthy; foul |
| 汚れる | よごれる yogoreru | to get dirty; to become dirty |
| 汚物 | おぶつ obutsu | filth (esp. excrement, feces, urine); muck; waste |
See also: Chinese symbol for “impurity”.
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.