Japanese symbol for “melancholy”
陰気
いんき
Romaji: inki
gloomy; dismal; miserable; melancholy
In Japanese, melancholy is 陰気, read いんき (inki).
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-na, n gloomy; dismal; miserable; melancholy
- n spirit of yin
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “melancholy”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 憂鬱 | ゆううつ yuuutsu | depression; melancholy; dejection |
| メランコリー | メランコリー merankorii | melancholy |
| 憂愁 | ゆうしゅう yuushuu | melancholy; gloom; grief |
| 憂さ | うさ usa | gloom; sadness; melancholy |
| 沈鬱 | ちんうつ chin'utsu | melancholy; gloom; depression |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 陰謀 | いんぼう inbou | plot; intrigue; scheme |
| 日陰 | ひかげ hikage | shade; shadow |
| 陰陽 | いんよう in'you | cosmic dual forces; yin and yang; sun and moon |
| 陰性 | いんせい insei | negative (result) |
| 木陰 | こかげ kokage | shade of a tree; bower |
| 山陰 | やまかげ yamakage | place in the shade of a mountain; shelter of the mountains |
| 気持ち | きもち kimochi | feeling; sensation; mood |
| 人気 | にんき ninki | popularity; public favor |
See also: Chinese symbol for “melancholy”.
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.