Beautiful in Japanese
"beautiful" in Japanese, with the kanji that carry the meaning.
4 Japanese kanji carry the meaning "beautiful". The most common choice is shown first.
Which one to use
美 is beauty plainly, and the character in 美しい. 麗 is elegant, polished beauty — beauty that has been arranged. 雅 is refined in the courtly sense, the beauty of restraint. 佳 is fine and pleasing, a quiet word used in names.
Top pick
beauty, beautiful
Reading: bi
9 strokes · beautiful
Where it comes from
Composed of sheep and big. Big sheep is beautiful.
What it carries
Beautiful, beauty, art. Represents beauty.
Related kanji for "beautiful"
beautiful
rei · beautiful, peaceful
Combines 'deer' (鹿, with beautiful antlers) with 'paired' (丽), representing beauty arranged like deer antlers.
beautiful
ga · beautiful, elegant
Composed of fang and bird. Elegant bird.
beautiful
ka · beautiful
Composed of person and jewel. Excellent person.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Japanese kanji for beautiful?
The most common kanji for "beautiful" is 美, read as bi. It means beauty, beautiful. Related kanji: 麗 (beautiful), 雅 (beautiful), 佳 (beautiful).
How many strokes does 美 have?
美 has 9 strokes.