無
nothingness · none · ain't · nothing · nil · not
Details
Description
Nothingness - the Zen character for emptiness. Not lack, but freedom from attachment and limit.
Stroke Order
Cultural Context
Etymology
Shape of dancing person. Nothing.
Symbolism
Nothing, infinite, free. Represents nothing.
Spiritual Meaning
Represents ultimate state in Buddhism and Taoism - liberation from attachment and true freedom.
Words & Expressions
Four-Character Compounds
悪逆無道
あくぎゃくむどう
treacherous; heinous; treasonous
感慨無量
かんがいむりょう
deep emotion; being filled with emotion
公平無私
こうへいむし
impartiality; fair play
厚顔無恥
こうがんむち
shameless; brazen and unscrupulous
荒唐無稽
こうとうむけい
absurd; nonsensical; preposterous
事実無根
じじつむこん
groundless; entirely contrary to fact
遮二無二
しゃにむに
desperately; recklessly; (rushing) headlong
縦横無尽
じゅうおうむじん
freely; right and left; as one pleases
諸行無常
しょぎょうむじょう
all things must pass; all worldly things are impermanent
千万無量
せんまんむりょう
innumerable; unfathomable; unutterable
天衣無縫
てんいむほう
perfect beauty with no trace of artifice; flawless
天下無双
てんかむそう
peerless; unequaled; unequalled
天地無用
てんちむよう
do not turn upside down
平穏無事
へいおんぶじ
peaceful; quiet; uneventful
傍若無人
ぼうじゃくぶじん
behaving outrageously as though there were no one around; acting without consideration for others; arrogance
無為徒食
むいとしょく
idling one's time away
無為無策
むいむさく
do-nothing, plan-nothing (government, etc.)
無我夢中
むがむちゅう
losing oneself (in); being absorbed (in); forgetting oneself
無事息災
ぶじそくさい
safe and healthy; health and longevity
無知蒙昧
むちもうまい
unenlightened; uneducated; ignorant
無茶苦茶
むちゃくちゃ
nonsensical; unreasonable; absurd
無二無三
むにむさん
in earnest; single-minded; with intense concentration
無味乾燥
むみかんそう
dull; uninteresting; dry
無欲恬淡
むよくてんたん
indifferent to worldly gain
無理算段
むりさんだん
scraping together (a sum of money); raising (a sum of money) by straining one's credit
無理難題
むりなんだい
unreasonable demand
問答無用
もんどうむよう
there being no use in arguing (about it); not up for discussion
唯一無二
ゆいいつむに
one and only; unique
有害無益
ゆうがいむえき
more harm than good; harmful and of no use
有名無実
ゆうめいむじつ
in name but not in reality
慇懃無礼
いんぎんぶれい
superficially polite but actually rude; rude under a veneer of politeness; courteous on the surface but insolent at heart
有耶無耶
うやむや
indefinite; hazy; vague
人畜無害
じんちくむがい
harmless to humans and animals; having no influence; unimportant
広大無辺
こうだいむへん
boundless; infinite; vast
完全無欠
かんぜんむけつ
flawless; absolute perfection
無芸大食
むげいたいしょく
lacking the talent to do anything but eat
無念無想
むねんむそう
free from worldly or worthless thoughts
無常迅速
むじょうじんそく
the (fast) pace at which life passes, and thus the nearness of death; promptitude of the changes of the times
無理往生
むりおうじょう
forced compliance; coercion; compulsion
無理無体
むりむたい
by force
無間地獄
むけんじごく
the Avici hell (the eighth and most painful of the eight hells); hell of uninterrupted suffering
純真無垢
じゅんしんむく
pure; purity
融通無碍
ゆうずうむげ
free, unfettered and flexible; versatile; adaptable
傲岸無礼
ごうがんぶれい
arrogance
傲慢無礼
ごうまんぶれい
(arrogance and) insolence
有形無形
ゆうけいむけい
tangible and intangible; material and spiritual
有象無象
うぞうむぞう
mob; the masses; rabble
清浄無垢
せいじょうむく
purity; spotlessness
天壌無窮
てんじょうむきゅう
as eternal as heaven and earth
国士無双
こくしむそう
distinguished person; thirteen orphans; winning hand containing one of each terminal and honor tile plus one extra copy of any of them
無罪放免
むざいほうめん
acquittal
天下無敵
てんかむてき
peerless; unequalled; unequaled
海内無双
かいだいむそう
unparalleled in the whole country
古今無双
ここんむそう
unparalleled in history
孤立無援
こりつむえん
isolated and helpless; alone and unassisted
残念無念
ざんねんむねん
deep regret; bitter disappointment; chagrin
痛快無比
つうかいむひ
very thrilling; extremely delightful; awfully pleasant
放蕩無頼
ほうとうぶらい
being dissolute and unruly; ruining oneself by leading a fast life
無位無官
むいむかん
having no special rank or title
無為自然
むいしぜん
abandoning artifice and just being oneself; doing nothing and taking things as they come; unconditioned nature
無為無能
むいむのう
idle and incompetent; accomplishing nothing significant nor being capable of doing so; lacking the talent to do anything but idle away one's time
無学文盲
むがくもんもう
ignorant and illiterate; uneducated and illiterate; uneducated and illiterate person
無病息災
むびょうそくさい
sound health
問答無益
もんどうむえき
there being no use in arguing (about it); not up for discussion
薬石無効
やくせきむこう
neither medicines nor medical care having little effect on a patient
冷酷無情
れいこくむじょう
cruel and heartless; merciless; implacable
金甌無欠
きんおうむけつ
flawless; perfect; (a nation) having never been invaded by outside forces
冷酷無残
れいこくむざん
cruel and heartless; merciless; implacable
安穏無事
あんのんぶじ
peace and quiet; safe and peaceful; tranquil and uneventful
虚無恬淡
きょむてんたん
rising above the trivia of life and remaining calm and selfless
縦横無礙
じゅうおうむげ
being as free as the air; active without any restraint
純一無雑
じゅんいつむざつ
pure and unadulterated; pure in heart; simplehearted
大逆無道
たいぎゃくむどう
heinous; treacherous; atrocious
他言無用
たごんむよう
not a word to anyone; keep it secret; mum's the word
忠勇無双
ちゅうゆうむそう
of peerless loyalty and bravery
天下無類
てんかむるい
peerless (unparalleled, matchless, unequaled) in the country
当代無双
とうだいむそう
being unsurpassed (unparalleled) at present
南無三宝
なむさんぼう
Homage to the Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma and Sangha); oh no!; good heavens!
剽悍無比
ひょうかんむひ
as fierce and nimble as any; daring and agile without equal
無事平穏
ぶじへいおん
peace and quiet; safe and peaceful; tranquil and uneventful
無礼千万
ぶれいせんばん
extremely rude (impertinent, impolite)
平安無事
へいあんぶじ
peace and quiet; safe and peaceful; tranquil and uneventful
無益有害
むえきゆうがい
useless and harmful
無学無識
むがくむしき
illiterate and ignorant; uneducated and lacking in wisdom and discernment
無学無知
むがくむち
illiterate and ignorant
無垢清浄
むくせいじょう
pure and innocent; immaculate
無策無為
むさくむい
do-nothingism; do-nothing, plan-nothing (government, etc.); being an idle onlooker taking no steps to meet the situation
無始無終
むしむしゅう
everlastingness; eternity
無色透明
むしょくとうめい
colorless and transparent
無想無念
むそうむねん
being free from all distracting thoughts; keeping one's mind clear of all worldly thoughts; being free from all ideas and thoughts
無知愚昧
むちぐまい
unenlightened; in the darkest ignorance; not knowing from A to B
無知文盲
むちもんもう
ignorance and illiteracy
無手勝流
むてかつりゅう
winning without fighting; method used to win without fighting; one's own way of doing things (i.e. as different from that of one's instructor)
無念千万
むねんせんばん
being really disappointed; feeling utterly mortified; being deeply vexed
無理非道
むりひどう
unreasonable and unjust; unconscionable
無量無辺
むりょうむへん
immense and limitless
勇猛無比
ゆうもうむひ
most brave; as brave as any; unmatched for valor
市井無頼
しせいぶらい
urban villain; street hoodlum
無明長夜
むみょうじょうや
the long night of spiritual darkness
諸法無我
しょほうむが
idea that all things in the universe lack their own unchangeable substances
無私無偏
むしむへん
to think or act fairly without concern for one's own benefit
無私無欲
むしむよく
selflessness; unselfishness
有相無相
うそうむそう
all things in nature; the whole creation
Anime & Manga
鬼滅の刃 無限列車編
Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train
A well-known work with 無 in its Japanese title.
無職転生 ~異世界行ったら本気だす~
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation
A well-known work with 無 in its Japanese title.
無職転生Ⅱ ~異世界行ったら本気だす~
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 2
A well-known work with 無 in its Japanese title.
劇場版「鬼滅の刃」無限城編 第一章 猗窩座再来
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle
A well-known work with 無 in its Japanese title.
無職転生Ⅲ ~異世界行ったら本気だす~
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 3
A well-known work with 無 in its Japanese title.
Related Figures & Stories
無学祖元
Name contains 無
Named Wuxue Zuyuan in China, Mugaku Sogen , also known as Bukko Kokushi in Japan, was a prominent Chinese Zen Buddhist monk of the 13th century in…
Wikipedia無外如大
Name contains 無
Mugai Nyodai was one of the first abbesses of Zen Buddhism and the first female Zen master in Japan.
Wikipedia無住
Name contains 無
Mujū Dōkyō , birth name Ichien Dōkyō, was a Buddhist monk of the Japanese Kamakura period.
WikipediaOther kanji with the same meaning
“nothingness”
“nothing”
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 無 mean in Japanese?
無 means nothingness, none, ain't, nothing, nil, not. Nothingness - the Zen character for emptiness. Not lack, but freedom from attachment and limit.
How do you read 無?
On'yomi: ム、ブ (MU, BU). Kun'yomi: な.い (nai).
How many strokes does 無 have?
無 has 12 strokes. Its radical is 火 (fire).
Is 無 a good kanji for a tattoo?
無 is one of the kanji most often chosen for tattoos. It means nothingness, none, ain't, nothing, nil, not. Read the full meaning and cultural background on this page first — some popular choices are deliberately dark.
Explore by meaning:nothingness · nothing