Japanese symbol for “mere”
単なる
たんなる
Romaji: tannaru
mere; simple; sheer
In Japanese, mere is 単なる, read たんなる (tannaru).
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-pn mere; simple; sheer
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “mere”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 一介 | いっかい ikkai | a mere ...; only a ...; insignificant |
| 素 | す su | mere; poor |
| 本の | ほんの honno | mere; only; just |
| 儚い | はかない hakanai | empty (dream, etc.); mere (hope); faint (possibility) |
| に過ぎない | にすぎない nisuginai | no more than; just; only |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 簡単 | かんたん kantan | simple; easy; uncomplicated |
| 単位 | たんい tan'i | unit (e.g. meters, grams, etc.); denomination |
| 単純 | たんじゅん tanjun | simple; plain; uncomplicated |
| 単に | たんに tanni | simply; merely; only |
| 単語 | たんご tango | word; vocabulary |
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.