汚 — “Dirty / Pollute / Disgrace / Rape” in Japanese

Master (高手)お, けが, よご, きたな

Radical ⽔ · radical 85 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Dirty / Pollute / Disgrace / Rape” in Japanese is 汚, read o, kega, yogo (お, けが, よご, きたな). It is a Jōyō kanji taught in Japanese secondary school (junior & senior high) — the 高手 · Master tier beyond the grade 1–6 Kyōiku set, and appears in words such as 汚染 (pollution).

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What does 汚 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	汚
Meaning	Dirty / Pollute / Disgrace / Rape
Readings	お, けが, よご, きたな
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	汚染 (pollution)

How to read 汚

汚 is read o (お) or kega (けが) or yogo (よご) or kitana (きたな) depending on the word.

Words with 汚

汚染

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Updated: 2026-08-28