Japanese symbol for “smallpox”
天然痘
てんねんとう
Romaji: tennentou
smallpox; variola
In Japanese, smallpox is 天然痘, read てんねんとう (tennentou).
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
- n smallpox; variola
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “smallpox”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 疱瘡 | ほうそう housou | smallpox; variola |
| 痘瘡 | とうそう tousou | smallpox; variola |
| 痘痕 | いも imo | smallpox |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 天皇 | てんのう tennou | Emperor of Japan |
| 天気 | てんき tenki | weather |
| 天才 | てんさい tensai | genius; prodigy; natural gift |
| 天然 | てんねん tennen | nature; spontaneity |
| 天国 | てんごく tengoku | paradise; heaven; Kingdom of Heaven |
| 天井 | てんじょう tenjou | ceiling |
| 自然 | しぜん shizen | nature |
| 当然 | とうぜん touzen | natural; right; proper |
| 種痘 | しゅとう shutou | smallpox vaccination; inoculation against smallpox |
See also: Chinese symbol for “smallpox”.
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.