Japanese symbol for “unsatisfactory”
遺憾
いかん
Romaji: ikan
regrettable; unsatisfactory; deplorable; lamentable
In Japanese, unsatisfactory is 遺憾, read いかん (ikan).
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 regrettable; unsatisfactory; deplorable; lamentable
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “unsatisfactory”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 物足りない | ものたりない monotarinai | unsatisfied; unsatisfactory; insufficient in some way |
| 無し | なし nashi | unacceptable; not alright; unsatisfactory |
| 偏 | かたほ kataho | imperfect; incomplete; unsatisfactory |
| 思わしくない | おもわしくない omowashikunai | disappointing; unsatisfactory; unsuitable |
| 意に満たない | いにみたない inimitanai | unsatisfactory |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 遺産 | いさん isan | inheritance; bequest; legacy |
| 遺体 | いたい itai | (dead) body; corpse; remains |
| 遺跡 | いせき iseki | (archeological) remains; ruins; relics |
| 遺伝 | いでん iden | heredity; (genetic) inheritance |
| 遺伝子 | いでんし idenshi | gene |
| 遺言 | ゆいごん yuigon | will; testament; one's dying wish |
| 遺憾なく | いかんなく ikannaku | fully; to the full; (most) satisfactorily |
| 遺憾千万 | いかんせんばん ikansenban | extremely regrettable; deeply unfortunate; most disappointing |
See also: Chinese symbol for “unsatisfactory”.
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.