Japanese symbol for “frustrating”
悔しい
くやしい
Romaji: kuyashii
frustrated (over a failure, humiliation or injustice); annoyed; chagrined; (bitterly) disappointed
In Japanese, frustrating is 悔しい, read くやしい (kuyashii).
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 frustrated (over a failure, humiliation or injustice); annoyed; chagrined; (bitterly) disappointed; bitter; vexed
Written forms: 悔しい、口惜しい、悔やしい. Readings: くやしい、くやしーい.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “frustrating”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 歯がゆい | はがゆい hagayui | (feeling) impatient; irritated; irritating |
| もどかしい | もどかしい modokashii | irritating; irritated; frustrating |
| 口惜しい | くちおしい kuchioshii | frustrated (over a failure, humiliation or injustice); annoyed; chagrined |
| 焦れったい | じれったい jirettai | irritating; impatient; annoying |
| 苛立たしい | いらだたしい iradatashii | irritating; frustrating |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 後悔 | こうかい koukai | regret; repentance; remorse |
| 悔い | くい kui | regret; repentance |
| 悔やむ | くやむ kuyamu | to mourn; to lament |
| 懺悔 | ざんげ zange | repentance; confession; penitence |
| 悔し泣き | くやしなき kuyashinaki | crying from vexation; tears of regret |
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.