King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “cheerful”

Romaji: youki
cheerful; jovial; merry; lively

In Japanese, cheerful is , read (youki).

Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.

Meanings

  1. adj-na, n cheerful; jovial; merry; lively
  2. n weather; season
  3. n spirit of yang

Kanji and stroke order

sunshine, yang principle, positive
on: ヨウ
kun: ひ
12 strokes · JLPT 2
spirit, mind, air
on: キ、ケ
kun: いき、き
6 strokes · JLPT 4

Other Japanese words for “cheerful”

WordReadingMeaning
めいろう meiroucheerful; bright
ゆかい yukaipleasant; delightful; enjoyable
かいかつ kaikatsucheerful; lively; lighthearted
あかるい akaruicheerful; bright; spirited
ほがらか hogarakacheerful; merry; sunny

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
たいよう taiyouSun
ようし youshiproton
いんよう in'youcosmic dual forces; yin and yang; sun and moon
さんよう san'yousouth side of a mountain; Sanyo district
ようせい youseipositive (result)
きもち kimochifeeling; sensation; mood
にんき ninkipopularity; public favor
きぶん kibunfeeling; mood

See also: Chinese symbol for “cheerful”.

Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.