Japanese symbol for “unsatisfied”
物足りない
ものたりない
Romaji: monotarinai
unsatisfied; unsatisfactory; insufficient in some way; lacking something
In Japanese, unsatisfied is 物足りない, read ものたりない (monotarinai).
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-i unsatisfied; unsatisfactory; insufficient in some way; lacking something
Written forms: 物足りない、もの足りない、モノ足りない、物足り無い. Readings: ものたりない.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “unsatisfied”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 飽き足らない | あきたらない akitaranai | unfulfilled (by); unsatisfied (with); (still) not satisfied |
| 納まらない | おさまらない osamaranai | feeling grieved; unsatisfied |
| 食い足りない | くいたりない kuitarinai | unsatisfied; dissatisfied with; leaving something to be desired |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 動物 | どうぶつ doubutsu | animal |
| 人物 | じんぶつ jinbutsu | person; character; figure |
| 物語 | ものがたり monogatari | story; tale; narrative |
| 建物 | たてもの tatemono | building |
| 物質 | ぶっしつ busshitsu | material; substance |
| 本物 | ほんもの honmono | genuine article; real thing; real deal |
| 満足 | まんぞく manzoku | satisfaction; contentment; gratification |
| 不足 | ふそく fusoku | insufficiency; deficiency; shortage |
See also: Chinese symbol for “unsatisfied”.
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.