Japanese symbol for “unsuited”

不相応

ふそうおう

Romaji: fusouou

unsuited; inappropriate; improper; undeserved

In Japanese, unsuited is 不相応, read ふそうおう (fusouou).

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 unsuited; inappropriate; improper; undeserved

Kanji and stroke order

不

negative, non-, bad

on: フ、ブ

4 strokes · JLPT 3

相

inter-, mutual, together

on: ソウ、ショウ
kun: あい-

9 strokes · JLPT 2

応

apply, answer, yes

on: オウ、ヨウ、-ノウ
kun: あた.る、まさに、こた.える

7 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “unsuited”

Word	Reading	Meaning
適さない	てきさない tekisanai	unsuited; unfit; ill-fitted

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
不明	ふめい fumei	unclear; obscure; indistinct
不安	ふあん fuan	anxiety; uneasiness; worry
不足	ふそく fusoku	insufficiency; deficiency; shortage
不満	ふまん fuman	dissatisfaction; discontent; displeasure
不可能	ふかのう fukanou	impossible
不思議	ふしぎ fushigi	wonderful; marvelous; strange
相手	あいて aite	companion; partner; company
相談	そうだん soudan	consultation; discussion; discussing
対応	たいおう taiou	correspondence (to); equivalence

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.