Japanese symbol for “dreadfully”
酷く
ひどく
Romaji: hidoku
terribly; awfully; dreadfully; extremely
In Japanese, dreadfully is 酷く, read ひどく (hidoku).
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 terribly; awfully; dreadfully; extremely; severely; very (much)
Written forms: 酷く、非道く. Readings: ひどく.
Kanji and stroke order
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 残酷 | ざんこく zankoku | cruel; brutal; ruthless |
| 過酷 | かこく kakoku | severe; harsh; hard |
| 冷酷 | れいこく reikoku | cruelty; coldheartedness; relentless |
| 酷い | ひどい hidoi | cruel; heartless; hard |
| 酷暑 | こくしょ kokusho | intense heat; severe heat |
| 酷評 | こくひょう kokuhyou | severe criticism; sharp criticism; scathing criticism |
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.