Japanese symbol for “leper”
癩
らい
Romaji: rai
Hansen's disease; leprosy; leper
In Japanese, leper is 癩, read らい (rai).
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 Hansen's disease; leprosy; leper
Written forms: 癩. Readings: らい、かったい、かたい.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “leper”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 癩病患者 | らいびょうかんじゃ raibyoukanja | leper |
| 癩者 | らいしゃ raisha | leper |
| らい患者 | らいがんしゃ raigansha | leper; leprosy sufferer |
| ハンセン病患者 | ハンセンびょうかんじゃ hansenbyoukanja | leper |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 癩病患者 | らいびょうかんじゃ raibyoukanja | leper |
| 救癩 | きゅうらい kyuurai | helping lepers |
| 白癩 | しらはたけ shirahatake | vitiligo; leucoderma; leukoderma |
| 黒癩 | こくらい kokurai | black leprosy |
| 癩者 | らいしゃ raisha | leper |
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.