Japanese symbol for “infamy”

汚名

おめい

Romaji: omei

bad name; bad reputation; disgrace; dishonour

In Japanese, infamy is 汚名, read おめい (omei).

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 bad name; bad reputation; disgrace; dishonour; dishonor; stigma

Kanji and stroke order

汚

dirty, pollute, disgrace

on: オ
kun: けが.す、けが.れる、けが.らわしい、よご.す

6 strokes · JLPT 2

名

name, noted, distinguished

on: メイ、ミョウ
kun: な、-な

6 strokes · JLPT 4

Other Japanese words for “infamy”

Word	Reading	Meaning
悪評	あくひょう akuhyou	bad reputation; infamy; ill repute

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
汚染	おせん osen	pollution; contamination
汚れ	よごれ yogore	dirt; filth; stain
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
名前	なまえ namae	name
有名	ゆうめい yuumei	famous; well-known

See also: Chinese symbol for “infamy”.

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.