Japanese symbol for “wretched”
悲惨
ひさん
Romaji: hisan
disastrous; tragic; miserable; wretched
In Japanese, wretched is 悲惨, read ひさん (hisan).
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 disastrous; tragic; miserable; wretched; pitiful; woeful
Written forms: 悲惨、悲酸. Readings: ひさん.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “wretched”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 気の毒 | きのどく kinodoku | pitiful; unfortunate; poor |
| 惨め | みじめ mijime | miserable; wretched; unhappy |
| 嘆かわしい | なげかわしい nagekawashii | lamentable; deplorable; regrettable |
| 浅ましい | あさましい asamashii | wretched; miserable; shameful |
| 憂い | うい ui | unhappy; sad; miserable |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 悲劇 | ひげき higeki | tragedy; tragic drama; tragic play |
| 悲しみ | かなしみ kanashimi | sadness; sorrow; grief |
| 悲鳴 | ひめい himei | shriek; scream |
| 悲しい | かなしい kanashii | sad; miserable; unhappy |
| 悲観 | ひかん hikan | pessimism; (taking a) gloomy view; discouragement |
| 惨敗 | ざんぱい zanpai | ignominious defeat; crushing failure; utterly beaten |
| 惨め | みじめ mijime | miserable; wretched; unhappy |
| 惨事 | さんじ sanji | disaster; tragedy; tragic incident |
See also: Chinese symbol for “wretched”.
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.
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