How to Say "Doodle" in Japanese

落書き

rakugaki[ɾa̠kɯ̟ɡa̠kʲi]

The Japanese word for 'to doodle' is 落書き (rakugaki).

The term 落書き can refer to either the act of doodling (to draw or scribble aimlessly) or the resulting small, mindless sketch itself.

Meaning: to draw or scribble aimlessly (verb)

Related words

To use 落書き as a verb, you must add the verb する (suru, to do) to the noun, forming the phrase 落書きをする.

rakugaki

The word 落書き combines the characters for 'fall' or 'drop' and 'writing'.
While 落書き is often used for harmless doodling, it can also carry a negative nuance of 'vandalism' or 'graffiti' when used in the context of public property.
The word 落書き derives from 落書, where the second character is read with its native Japanese pronunciation instead of the Chinese-derived one.

退屈しているときに、紙に落書きをしたことがありませんか？
Do you ever doodle on a piece of paper when you're bored?
This sentence is useful for asking if someone has ever doodled on paper while bored using 落書き.
Tatoeba #10952543 by bunbuku, translation #12483889 by Lumi
講義中に机の上にぐるぐる書くのをやめてください。
Please stop doodling swirls on your desk during the lecture.
暇なときにフリーハンドで絵を描くのが好きです。
I enjoy doodling freehand drawings when I have free time.
ノートの隅に落書きをしました。
Nōto no sumi ni rakugaki o shimashita.
I doodled in the corner of my notebook.
会議中に落書きをしないでください。
Kaigichū ni rakugaki o shinaide kudasai.
Please do not doodle during the meeting.

Misaki sees Ren sketching aimlessly in his notebook during a break.

美咲 Misaki

蓮くん、それは何をしているの？
Ren-kun, sore wa nani o shite iru no?
Ren, what are you doing?
蓮 Ren

ただの落書きだよ。
Tada no rakugaki dayo.
It's just a doodle.
美咲 Misaki

全然関係ない絵だね。
Zenzen kankei nai e dane.
It's a completely random drawing.
蓮 Ren

暇なときはつい落書きしちゃうんだ。
Hima na toki wa tsui rakugaki shichau nda.
When I'm bored, I just end up doodling.

Sources

Wiktionary, “doodle” translations and entries 落書き, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
Word origins: Wiktionary entries 落書き, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.

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