Japanese symbol for “vice”
悪徳
あくとく
Romaji: akutoku
vice; immorality; corruption
In Japanese, vice is 悪徳, read あくとく (akutoku).
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 vice; immorality; corruption
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “vice”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 悪事 | あくじ akuji | evil deed; wrongdoing; crime |
| 罪悪 | ざいあく zaiaku | crime; sin; vice |
| 不徳 | ふとく futoku | lack of virtue; immorality; vice |
| 悪習 | あくしゅう akushuu | bad habit; bad custom; evil practice |
| バイス | バイス baisu | vice; immorality |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 最悪 | さいあく saiaku | worst |
| 悪口 | わるぐち waruguchi | (verbal) abuse; speaking ill of people; bad-mouthing |
| 悪化 | あっか akka | deterioration; getting worse; worsening |
| 悪魔 | あくま akuma | devil; demon; fiend |
| 悪い | わるい warui | bad; poor; undesirable |
| 悪質 | あくしつ akushitsu | malicious; vicious; malignant |
| 道徳 | どうとく doutoku | morals; morality |
| 美徳 | びとく bitoku | virtue |
See also: Chinese symbol for “vice”.
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.