Japanese symbol for “male”
雄
おす
Romaji: osu
male (animal, plant)
In Japanese, male is 雄, read おす (osu).
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
- adj-no, n male (animal, plant)
Written forms: 雄、牡. Readings: おす、おん、オス.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “male”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 男 | おとこ otoko | man; male |
| 男性 | だんせい dansei | man; male |
| メール | メール meeru | male |
| 男子 | だんし danshi | man; male |
| 男 | だん dan | man; male |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 英雄 | えいゆう eiyuu | hero; heroine; great person |
| 雄大 | ゆうだい yuudai | grand; magnificent; majestic |
| 雌雄 | しゆう shiyuu | male and female (animals); the two sexes |
| 雄弁 | ゆうべん yuuben | eloquence; fluency (of speech) |
| 両雄 | りょうゆう ryouyuu | two great men |
| 雄姿 | ゆうし yuushi | majestic figure; imposing figure; impressive appearance |
See also: Chinese symbol for “male”.
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.