Japanese symbol for “outpatient”

外来

がいらい

Romaji: gairai

foreign; imported

In Japanese, outpatient is 外来, read がいらい (gairai).

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 foreign; imported
adj-no, n outpatient; outpatient care; outpatient clinic; outpatient ward

Kanji and stroke order

外

outside

on: ガイ、ゲ
kun: そと、ほか、はず.す、はず.れる

5 strokes · JLPT 4

来

come, due, next

on: ライ、タイ
kun: く.る、きた.る、きた.す、き.たす

7 strokes · JLPT 4

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
海外	かいがい kaigai	foreign; abroad; overseas
外国	がいこく gaikoku	foreign country
以外	いがい igai	excluding; except (for); apart from
外交	がいこう gaikou	diplomacy
意外	いがい igai	unexpected; surprising; unanticipated
外部	がいぶ gaibu	outside (e.g. of a building); exterior
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)

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.