Japanese symbol for “frightening”
怖い
こわい
Romaji: kowai
scary; frightening; eerie; dreadful
In Japanese, frightening is 怖い, read こわい (kowai).
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 scary; frightening; eerie; dreadful
Written forms: 怖い、恐い. Readings: こわい.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “frightening”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 恐ろしい | おそろしい osoroshii | terrible; dreadful; terrifying |
| 怖 | こわ kowa | frightening; terrifying |
| 末恐ろしい | すえおそろしい sueosoroshii | frightening (of the future); worrying; scary |
| おっかない | おっかない okkanai | frightening; scary |
| 恐ろしげ | おそろしげ osoroshige | frightening; fearsome; awful |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 恐怖 | きょうふ kyoufu | fear; dread; dismay |
| 恐怖症 | きょうふしょう kyoufushou | phobia; morbid fear |
| 怖がる | こわがる kowagaru | to be afraid (of); to fear; to be frightened (of) |
| 畏怖 | いふ ifu | awe; fear; dread |
| 怖気 | おぞけ ozoke | fear; dread; fright |
See also: Chinese symbol for “frightening”.
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.