Japanese symbol for “scrawny”
貧相
ひんそう
Romaji: hinsou
poor-looking; impoverished-looking
In Japanese, scrawny is 貧相, read ひんそう (hinsou).
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-na, n poor-looking; impoverished-looking
- adj-na, n scrawny (e.g. figure); thin-looking; sparse (e.g. meal); meagre; meager; insubstantial
Written forms: 貧相、貧素. Readings: ひんそう.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “scrawny”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 悴 | かせ kase | low; poor; scrawny |
| ギスギス | ギスギス gisugisu | thin and bony; scrawny |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 貧困 | ひんこん hinkon | poverty; penury; need |
| 貧しい | まずしい mazushii | poor; needy |
| 貧乏 | びんぼう binbou | poverty-stricken; destitute; poor |
| 貧血 | ひんけつ hinketsu | anemia; anaemia |
| 貧弱 | ひんじゃく hinjaku | poor; meagre; meager |
| 貧富 | ひんぷ hinpu | wealth and poverty; rich and poor |
| 相手 | あいて aite | companion; partner; company |
| 相談 | そうだん soudan | consultation; discussion; discussing |
See also: Chinese symbol for “scrawny”.
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.