Japanese symbol for “sully”

泥を塗る

どろをぬる

Romaji: doroonuru

to besmirch; to sully

In Japanese, sully is 泥を塗る, read どろをぬる (doroonuru).

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

exp, v5r to besmirch; to sully

Kanji and stroke order

泥

mud, mire, adhere to

on: デイ、ナイ、デ、ニ
kun: どろ、なず.む

8 strokes · JLPT 2

塗

paint, plaster, daub

on: ト
kun: ぬ.る、ぬ.り、まみ.れる

13 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “sully”

Word	Reading	Meaning
歪める	ゆがめる yugameru	to corrupt; to sully

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
泥棒	どろぼう dorobou	thief; burglar; robber
泥酔	でいすい deisui	being dead drunk; drunken stupor
泥沼	どろぬま doronuma	bog; marsh; swamp
雲泥の差	うんでいのさ undeinosa	wide difference; a world of difference
汚泥	おでい odei	sludge; slime; dregs
泥炭	でいたん deitan	peat
塗る	ぬる nuru	to paint; to spread; to plaster
塗装	とそう tosou	coating; painting

See also: Chinese symbol for “sully”.

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.