King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “portray”

Romaji: utsushidasu
to project; to show (on a screen); to reflect (of a mirror, lake, etc.)

In Japanese, portray is , read (utsushidasu).

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

  1. v5s, vt to project; to show (on a screen); to reflect (of a mirror, lake, etc.)
  2. v5s, vt to portray; to depict; to describe
  3. v5s, vt to reflect (the times, mood, etc.)

Written forms: . Readings: .

Kanji and stroke order

reflect, reflection, projection
on: エイ
kun: うつ.る、うつ.す、は.える、-ば.え
9 strokes · JLPT 3
exit, leave, go out
on: シュツ、スイ
kun: で.る、-で、だ.す、-だ.す
5 strokes · JLPT 4

Other Japanese words for “portray”

WordReadingMeaning
うつす utsusuto describe; to depict; to portray

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
えいが eigamovie; film; motion picture
えいぞう eizouimage (on a screen); picture (e.g. on a TV)
じょうえい joueiscreening (a movie); showing
はんえい han'eireflection (of light)
ほうえい houeitelevising; broadcasting; airing
うつる utsuruto be reflected; to harmonize with (harmonise); to come out (photo)
しゅつえん shutsuenappearance (in a film, play, TV show, etc.); performance
だす dasuto take out; to get out

See also: Chinese symbol for “portray”.

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.

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