King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “floating”

Romaji: uki
floating; buoyancy

In Japanese, floating is , read (uki).

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. n floating; buoyancy
  2. n fishing float; bobber
  3. n buoy
  4. n lifebuoy; life belt; float; rubber ring

Written forms: . Readings: .

Kanji and stroke order

floating, float, rise to surface
on: フ
kun: う.く、う.かれる、う.かぶ、う.かべる
10 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “floating”

WordReadingMeaning
ふゆう fuyuufloating; drifting; suspension
ふよう fuyoufloating (e.g. in air, water); floatation; buoyancy
ながし nagashifloating (something on water); setting adrift; washing away
ふどう fudoufloating
フローティング furootingufloating

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
うわき uwakiextramarital sex; affair; fooling around
うかぶ ukabuto float; to be suspended
ふじょう fujousurfacing; rising to the surface
うかべる ukaberuto float; to set afloat; to launch
うきぼり ukiborirelief; embossed carving
うきよえ ukiyoeukiyo-e; ukiyoe; Edo-period woodblock print

See also: Chinese symbol for “floating”.

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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