Japanese symbol for “improve”
上がる
あがる
Romaji: agaru
to rise; to go up; to come up; to ascend
In Japanese, improve is 上がる, read あがる (agaru).
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
- v5r, vi to rise; to go up; to come up; to ascend; to be raised
- v5r, vi to enter (esp. from outdoors); to come in; to go in
- v5r, vi to enter (a school); to advance to the next grade
- v5r, vi to get out (of water); to come ashore; to be washed ashore
- v5r, vi to float atop the water; to surface from the sea (e.g. of a corpse); to rise to the surface
- v5r, vi to increase; to be raised (e.g. of a salary); to rise
Written forms: 上がる、上る、騰がる、上ル. Readings: あがる、アガる.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “improve”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 見直す | みなおす minaosu | to improve; to recover (market, illness, etc.) |
| 持ち直す | もちなおす mochinaosu | to recover; to rally; to improve |
| 怠る | おこたる okotaru | to improve (of an illness); to get better |
| 伸びる | のびる nobiru | to make progress; to develop; to expand |
| 上げる | あげる ageru | to develop (talent, skill, etc.); to improve |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 以上 | いじょう ijou | not less than ...; ... and over; ... and above |
| 売り上げ | うりあげ uriage | amount sold; sales; proceeds |
| 上昇 | じょうしょう joushou | rising; ascending; climbing |
| 向上 | こうじょう koujou | elevation; rise; improvement |
| 上司 | じょうし joushi | (one's) superior; (one's) boss; the higher-ups |
| 地上 | ちじょう chijou | above ground; on the ground; earth's surface |
See also: Chinese symbol for “improve”.
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.