Japanese symbol for “invertebrates”

無脊椎動物

むせきついどうぶつ

Romaji: musekitsuidoubutsu

invertebrate; invertebrates; invertebrata

In Japanese, invertebrates is 無脊椎動物, read むせきついどうぶつ (musekitsuidoubutsu).

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 invertebrate; invertebrates; invertebrata (zool)

Kanji and stroke order

無

nothingness, none, ain't

on: ム、ブ
kun: な.い

12 strokes · JLPT 2

脊

stature, height, spine

on: セキ
kun: せ、せい

10 strokes

椎

chinquapin, mallet, spine

on: ツイ、スイ
kun: つち、う.つ

12 strokes · JLPT 1

動

move, motion, change

on: ドウ
kun: うご.く、うご.かす

11 strokes · JLPT 3

物

thing, object, matter

on: ブツ、モツ
kun: もの、もの-

8 strokes · JLPT 3

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
無料	むりょう muryou	free (of charge); gratuitous
無理	むり muri	unreasonable; unnatural; unjustifiable
無事	ぶじ buji	safety; security; peace
無駄	むだ muda	futility; waste; uselessness
無線	むせん musen	radio (communication)
無理やり	むりやり muriyari	forcibly; by force; against one's will
脊髄	せきずい sekizui	spinal cord
脊椎	せきつい sekitsui	spine; vertebral column; spinal column
椎間板	ついかんばん tsuikanban	intervertebral disk
活動	かつどう katsudou	activity (of a person, organization, animal, volcano, etc.); action; operation
動物	どうぶつ doubutsu	animal

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.