Japanese symbol for “sprout”
芽
め
Romaji: me
sprout; shoot; bud
In Japanese, sprout is 芽, read め (me).
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 sprout; shoot; bud
- n germinal disk (in an egg)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “sprout”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 新芽 | しんめ shinme | sprout; bud; shoot |
| 双葉 | ふたば futaba | seed leaves (of a dicot); cotyledons; bud |
| 芽生え | めばえ mebae | bud; sprout |
| 生える | はえる haeru | to grow; to spring up; to sprout |
| 萌芽 | ほうが houga | germination; germ; sprout |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 発芽 | はつが hatsuga | germination; sprouting; budding |
| 芽生え | めばえ mebae | bud; sprout |
| 麦芽 | ばくが bakuga | malt |
| 新芽 | しんめ shinme | sprout; bud; shoot |
| 萌芽 | ほうが houga | germination; germ; sprout |
| 芽生える | めばえる mebaeru | to bud; to sprout |
See also: Chinese symbol for “sprout”.
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.