Japanese symbol for “curiosity”
興味
きょうみ
Romaji: kyoumi
interest (in something); curiosity (about something); zest (for)
In Japanese, curiosity is 興味, read きょうみ (kyoumi).
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
- n interest (in something); curiosity (about something); zest (for)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “curiosity”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 物好き | ものずき monozuki | (idle) curiosity; fancifulness; eccentricity |
| 好奇心 | こうきしん koukishin | curiosity; inquisitiveness |
| 奇貨 | きか kika | curiosity; rare item; rarity |
| 怪異 | かいい kaii | mystery; curiosity; strangeness |
| 詮索好き | せんさくずき sensakuzuki | curiosity; inquisitiveness |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 興奮 | こうふん koufun | excitement; stimulation; agitation |
| 振興 | しんこう shinkou | promotion; encouragement |
| 新興 | しんこう shinkou | rising; developing; emergent |
| 復興 | ふっこう fukkou | revival; reconstruction; restoration |
| 興味深い | きょうみぶかい kyoumibukai | very interesting; of great interest |
| 意味 | いみ imi | meaning; significance; sense |
| 趣味 | しゅみ shumi | hobby; pastime |
| 味方 | みかた mikata | friend; ally; supporter |
See also: Chinese symbol for “curiosity”.
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.