Japanese toilet buttons: おしり (oshiri), ビデ (bide), 止 and 流す
On a Japanese toilet, おしり (oshiri) is the rear wash, ビデ (bide) is the front wash made for women, 止 (tome) stops the water, 乾燥 (かんそう, kansō) dries you with warm air, and 流す (ながす, nagasu) flushes, with 大 for a big flush and 小 for a small one. These sit on a side panel or a wall remote, and on many modern models nothing sprays until you are sitting down.
Most of these toilets are a Western-style bowl with a warm-water washing seat on top. TOTO launched its ウォシュレット (woshuretto) in 1980. In the Cabinet Office's consumer survey for March 2018, 80.2% of households of two or more people had a warm-water toilet seat, as nippon.com reports it. Facts on this page last checked on 2026-10-02.
About a dozen words cover nearly every panel. This guide gives them in groups, with the pictograms, squat toilets and door signs.
The standard Japanese toilet pictograms
In January 2017, the Japan Sanitary Equipment Industry Association, which includes nine makers such as TOTO, Panasonic and Toshiba, agreed to unify the icons on control panels. It did this after a survey of 600 Japanese and international participants, with tourists in mind.
The association's pictogram page speaks of 8 main pictograms, and English Wikipedia also says eight. The guideline it offers for download defines seven types, without a stop icon in its table. Counting stop, the set covers:
- a flush after stool (the big flush, 大)
- a light flush after urinating (the small flush, 小)
- the lid opening and closing
- the seat opening and closing
- stop (止)
- rear cleansing (おしり)
- front cleansing (ビデ)
- the dryer (乾燥)
Panels on toilets made before 2017 will have their own symbols, which is why the words still matter.
Japanese toilet flush buttons: 大 and 小
The word on a flush control is 流す (ながす, nagasu). Many toilets have two settings, 大 (大 (だい, dai)) for solid waste and 小 (小 (しょう, shō)) for liquid waste, which saves water. The dictionary gives 大 the sense of stool and 小 the sense of urine here. They also mean big and small, which is why they are the big and small flush. The panels may say 洗浄 (せんじょう, senjō) too: 大洗浄 and 小洗浄 are the same two flushes. One guide shows 大 on the left and 小 on the right, but layouts vary.
Flushing is not always a button. A lever on the tank turns to flush, some newer models have wall buttons or motion sensors, and some flush by themselves when you stand up.
Leave toilet paper in the bowl and flush it. Put sanitary products in the bin provided. A button next to the flush, labelled 呼出 (よびだし, yobidashi) and often red or yellow, is an emergency call for illness or disability. It alerts staff, so don't press it by accident. If something does go wrong, すみません (sumimasen) is the word to start with: see Sorry in Japanese.
Squat toilets (和式) and Western toilets (洋式)
Japanese toilets come in two styles. 和式 (わしき, washiki) means the squat toilet, and 洋式 (ようしき, yōshiki) means the Western sitting toilet. Modern homes and hotels mostly have 洋式, and the squat style is gradually becoming a rarity, though it is still common in public spaces. According to English Wikipedia, sales of Western toilets passed squat toilets in Japan as early as 1977.
To use a squat toilet, face the front of the bowl and squat down close to it. On a raised model, you step up onto the platform first.
Toilet signs in Japanese: トイレ, お手洗い, 化粧室, 男 and 女
The words for the toilet got gentler over time: Japanese Wikipedia traces ご不浄 to 手洗所, お手洗い and 化粧室 in the Showa era. These are the ones you will see on doors:
| Japanese | Reading | Romaji | Meaning | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| トイレ | トイレ | toire | toilet; restroom; bathroom | The everyday word, from the English toilet |
| お手洗い | おてあらい | otearai | toilet; restroom; lavatory | Literally a place to wash your hands: a softer word |
| 化粧室 | けしょうしつ | keshōshitsu | toilet; lavatory; powder room | The dictionary says powder room: a polite word, often in department stores and restaurants |
| 便所 | べんじょ | benjo | toilet; lavatory; water closet | A direct word: signs usually prefer a softer one |
| 男 | おとこ | otoko | man; male | Men |
| 女 | おんな | onna | woman; female | Women |
Doors often use the longer 男性 (だんせい, dansei) and 女性 (じょせい, josei) with the same meaning, or just pictograms. Older signs for an accessible toilet say 多目的トイレ (multipurpose toilet). Since February 2021, the transport ministry has asked operators to use バリアフリートイレ (barrier-free toilet) instead, so that people who don't need one don't take it, according to Japanese Wikipedia.
Toilet slippers
In some homes, ryokan and other places you take your shoes off, a pair of スリッパ (surippa) waits by the toilet door. They keep the toilet separate from the rest of the home, a clean area from an unclean one. Swap into them at the door and swap back when you leave: walking around in the toilet slippers is a classic mistake.
How to use a Japanese toilet with a bidet, step by step
- Sit down. On many modern models the spray won't start unless you are seated.
- When you have finished, press おしり. ビデ is the front wash, made for women.
- Adjust 水勢 if the water is too strong or too weak, and 温水 for the temperature, if your panel has them.
- Press 止 when you are done.
- Press 乾燥 to dry, if you like, or pat dry with a little paper.
- Flush with 流す, or 大 or 小.
Practise Japanese signs
Toilet signs, station signs, shop signs and more, in a short quiz.
Questions about Japanese toilets
What is so special about Japanese toilets?
Most Japanese toilets add a warm-water washing seat to an ordinary bowl. A typical model has a heated seat, a rear and front wash with adjustable pressure and temperature, a dryer, a deodoriser, an automatic lid and a privacy sound. Both styles of toilet also have a small and a big flush to save water.
What do the buttons on Japanese toilets mean?
The buttons name the action: おしり (rear wash), ビデ (front wash, made for women), 止 (stop), 乾燥 (dry), 流す (flush), with 大 and 小 for the two flushes. The table above gives the rest, and the pictograms repeat the main ones.
What are the two types of toilet flush buttons?
The two flush buttons are 大 for the big flush and 小 for the small one. 大 is for solid waste and 小 for liquid, and the small one uses less water.
What functions do Japanese toilets have?
A Japanese toilet can have a heated seat, a rear and front wash, a dryer, a deodoriser, a privacy sound, an automatic lid and a self-cleaning nozzle. Not every toilet has all of them.
Do you need to wipe with a Japanese toilet?
No, you don't have to use toilet paper with a Japanese wash toilet, but many people pat dry with a little paper. English Wikipedia says the wash can replace paper completely, though many people use both. TOTO calls its Washlet an alternative to toilet paper, and says the dryer matters less to some people than to those with limited mobility. Leave any paper in the bowl and flush.
Are you supposed to wipe first when using a bidet?
No, you don't need to wipe before using the wash: it is made to be used after you have finished, and many people then pat dry with a little paper. Habits vary: English Wikipedia lists people who wipe first, wash first, only wash or only wipe.
How to use a bidet with two buttons?
Sit down, press the wash button you want (おしり for the rear, ビデ for the front, which is made for women) and press the stop button, 止, when you are done. Then dry with 乾燥 or a little paper, and flush.
What do the different buttons on a bidet mean?
Each button names one action: wash the rear (おしり), wash the front (ビデ, made for women), stop (止), dry (乾燥), flush (流す), stronger or weaker spray (強 and 弱) and warm water (温水). The standard pictogram set shows eight functions as icons, including these.
What is so special about TOTO toilets?
TOTO launched the Washlet in 1980, and the name is now used for bidet toilet seats in general. The Japanese Wikipedia says TOTO's cumulative Washlet sales had passed 50 million by March 2019. Its main Japanese rival is LIXIL (formerly INAX), whose version is called シャワートイレ.
What is the best brand of Japanese toilet?
TOTO (Washlet) and LIXIL (シャワートイレ) are Japan's best-known makers, and the industry association's members include Panasonic and Toshiba. Compare models on features, the parts you can get and what the panel says, not on the name alone.
Is TOTO better than Kohler?
Neither is better in every way: TOTO is a Japanese maker that launched the Washlet in 1980, and Kohler is an American brand. Which suits you depends on the model, so compare the features and warranty of the ones you can buy where you live.
Does Costco sell TOTO washlets?
Yes, Costco's US website has sold TOTO Washlet seats, such as the KC2, which is listed as online only. Stock and prices change, so check Costco's site for your country. Facts on this page last checked on 2026-10-02.
Sources
- Readings and meanings: JMdict (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0), including its senses for おしり, ビデ, 大, 小, 洋式 and 和式.
- Pictograms: Japan Sanitary Equipment Industry Association, Standard pictograms and its guideline download page; It's Nice That, Japanese toilet industry agrees to standardise bidet control pictograms.
- Household figure: nippon.com, 温水洗浄便座の普及率は80%超え, reporting the Cabinet Office's consumer trends survey (households of two or more people, March 2018). Facts on this page last checked on 2026-10-02.
- Washlet in 1980, TOTO's sales and シャワートイレ: Japanese Wikipedia, 温水洗浄便座; English Wikipedia, Toilets in Japan (1977, the sensor that stops the spray, wiping habits).
- Toilet words and accessible toilets: Japanese Wikipedia, 便所 and バリアフリートイレ.
- Buttons and flush: Coto Academy, Guide to using Japanese toilets (止, 呼出, 暖房便座, wiping); GaijinPot, Kanji cheat sheet: how to use a Japanese toilet; Foleys in Japan, Japanese toilets for dummies; Japan Living Guide, How to use Japanese high-tech toilets.
- Paper in the bowl, sanitary bins and the emergency button: Japan Sanitary Equipment Industry Association, Using the toilet.
- Squat toilets, slippers and 洋式 in homes: japan-guide.com, Japanese toilets.
- Toilet paper and the dryer: TOTO Europe, How to use a Washlet.
- Costco: TOTO Washlet KC2 on costco.com. Facts on this page last checked on 2026-10-02.
- Reviewed independently; the points about the layout of 大 and 小, the signs, the wiping habits and the panel labels are waiting for a native speaker's check.