Japanese symbol for “next”
来
らい
Romaji: rai
next (year, spring, etc.); coming
In Japanese, next is 来, 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
- pref next (year, spring, etc.); coming
- suf since (e.g. last month); for (e.g. 20 years)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “next”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 隣 | となり tonari | next (to); adjoining; adjacent |
| 次 | つぎ tsugi | next; following; subsequent |
| 次いで | ついで tsuide | next; secondly; subsequently |
| 次 | じ ji | next |
| 来る | きたる kitaru | next (e.g. "next April"); forthcoming; coming |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 未来 | みらい mirai | (distant) future |
| 出来る | できる dekiru | to be able to do; to be possible; to be permitted (to do) |
| 以来 | いらい irai | since; henceforth |
| 将来 | しょうらい shourai | future; (future) prospects |
| 本来 | ほんらい honrai | originally; primarily |
| 来る | くる kuru | to come (spatially or temporally); to approach; to arrive |
See also: Chinese symbol for “next”.
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.