Japanese symbol for “residue”

余剰

よじょう

Romaji: yojou

surplus; remainder; residue; margin

In Japanese, residue is 余剰, read よじょう (yojou).

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-f, n surplus; remainder; residue; margin; balance

Kanji and stroke order

余

too much, myself, surplus

on: ヨ
kun: あま.る、あま.り、あま.す、あんま.り

7 strokes · JLPT 2

剰

surplus, besides

on: ジョウ
kun: あまつさえ、あま.り、あま.る

11 strokes · JLPT 1

Other Japanese words for “residue”

Word	Reading	Meaning
残滓	ざんし zanshi	remains; dregs; vestiges
残余	ざんよ zan'yo	remainder; the rest; residue
残基	ざんき zanki	residue
残りカス	のこりカス nokorikasu	residue; remnants; dregs
留数	りゅうすう ryuusuu	residue

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
余裕	よゆう yoyuu	surplus; margin; leeway
余計	よけい yokei	extra; more; too much
余地	よち yochi	space; room; unused land
余り	あまり amari	remainder; remnant; rest
余る	あまる amaru	to remain; to be left over; to be in excess
余暇	よか yoka	leisure; leisure time; spare time
過剰	かじょう kajou	excess; surplus; superabundance
剰余	じょうよ jouyo	surplus; balance; remainder

See also: Chinese symbol for “residue”.

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.