King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “desiring”

Romaji: hoshii
wanting (to have); desiring; wishing for

In Japanese, desiring is , read (hoshii).

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-i wanting (to have); desiring; wishing for
  2. adj-i, aux-adj I want (you, them, etc.) to (do)

Kanji and stroke order

longing, covetousness, greed
on: ヨク
kun: ほっ.する、ほ.しい
11 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “desiring”

WordReadingMeaning
あいぎょう aigyouseeking after (Buddhist teachings, etc.); wanting; desiring
なやましげ nayamashigeyearning (look, etc.); languishing; desiring

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
いよく iyokuwill; desire; eagerness
よっきゅう yokkyuudesire; want; will
よくぼう yokuboudesire; appetite; lust
しょくよく shokuyokuappetite (for food)
せいよく seiyokusexual desire; sex drive; lust

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.

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