King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “indispensable”

Romaji: hitsuyou
necessary; needed; essential; indispensable

In Japanese, indispensable is , read (hitsuyou).

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. adj-na necessary; needed; essential; indispensable
  2. n necessity; need; requirement

Written forms: . Readings: .

Kanji and stroke order

invariably, certain, inevitable
on: ヒツ
kun: かなら.ず
5 strokes · JLPT 2
need, main point, essence
on: ヨウ
kun: い.る、かなめ
9 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “indispensable”

WordReadingMeaning
ひっす hissuindispensable; essential; requisite
ふかけつ fukaketsuindispensable; essential
ひっけい hikkeiindispensable; essential; must-have
マスト masutonecessary; indispensable; must-have
かかせない kakasenaiindispensable; vital; fundamental

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
かならず kanarazualways; without exception; necessarily
ひっし hisshifrantic; frenetic; desperate
かならずしも kanarazushimo(not) always; (not) necessarily; (not) entirely
ひっす hissuindispensable; essential; requisite
ひつぜん hitsuzeninevitable; necessary; certain
じゅうよう juuyouimportant; essential; significant
ようきゅう youkyuudemand; firm request; requisition
ようそ yousoelement; component; factor

See also: Chinese symbol for “indispensable”.

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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