Japanese symbol for “cleverly”

上手く

うまく

Romaji: umaku

skilfully; skillfully; well; aptly

In Japanese, cleverly is 上手く, read うまく (umaku).

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

adv skilfully; skillfully; well; aptly; cleverly
adv successfully; smoothly
adv deliciously

Written forms: 上手く、旨く、巧く、甘く. Readings: うまく.

Kanji and stroke order

上

above, up

on: ジョウ、ショウ、シャン
kun: うえ、-うえ、うわ-、かみ

3 strokes · JLPT 4

手

hand

on: シュ、ズ
kun: て、て-、-て、た-

4 strokes · JLPT 4

Other Japanese words for “cleverly”

Word	Reading	Meaning
確り	しっかり shikkari	reliably; dependably; levelheadedly

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
以上	いじょう ijou	not less than ...; ... and over; ... and above
売り上げ	うりあげ uriage	amount sold; sales; proceeds
上昇	じょうしょう joushou	rising; ascending; climbing
向上	こうじょう koujou	elevation; rise; improvement
上司	じょうし joushi	(one's) superior; (one's) boss; the higher-ups
地上	ちじょう chijou	above ground; on the ground; earth's surface
相手	あいて aite	companion; partner; company
選手	せんしゅ senshu	player (of a sport); athlete; team member

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.