Japanese symbol for “ephemeral”
儚い
はかない
Romaji: hakanai
fleeting; transient; short-lived; momentary
In Japanese, ephemeral is 儚い, read はかない (hakanai).
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
- adj-i fleeting; transient; short-lived; momentary; ephemeral; fickle
- adj-i empty (dream, etc.); mere (hope); faint (possibility)
Written forms: 儚い、果敢無い、果無い、果敢ない. Readings: はかない.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “ephemeral”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 泡沫 | うたかた utakata | ephemeral; transient |
| 刹那的 | せつなてき setsunateki | ephemeral; transitory |
| エフェメラル | エフェメラル efemeraru | ephemeral |
| 泡沫的 | ほうまつてき houmatsuteki | transient; passing; fleeting |
| 泡沫夢幻 | ほうまつむげん houmatsumugen | transient; ephemeral; fleeting |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 儚くなる | はかなくなる hakanakunaru | to die; to pass away |
| 儚む | はかなむ hakanamu | to despair of; to see the vanity of |
See also: Chinese symbol for “ephemeral”.
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.