Japanese symbol for “squirrel”
栗鼠
りす
Romaji: risu
squirrel (any mammal of family Sciuridae)
In Japanese, squirrel is 栗鼠, read りす (risu).
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 squirrel (any mammal of family Sciuridae)
- n Japanese squirrel (Sciurus lis)
Written forms: 栗鼠. Readings: りす、リス.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “squirrel”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 木鼠 | きねずみ kinezumi | squirrel |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 片栗粉 | かたくりこ katakuriko | potato starch |
| 甘栗 | あまぐり amaguri | broiled sweet chestnuts |
| 栗毛 | くりげ kurige | chestnut (horse coat color) |
| 団栗 | どんぐり donguri | acorn |
| 栗色 | くりいろ kuriiro | chestnut-color; chestnut-colour |
| 鼠径 | そけい sokei | groin; inguinal region |
| 殺鼠剤 | さっそざい sassozai | rat poison; rodenticide |
| 窮鼠 | きゅうそ kyuuso | cornered rat |
See also: Chinese symbol for “squirrel”.
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.