Japanese symbol for “moment”
瞬間
しゅんかん
Romaji: shunkan
moment; instant; second
In Japanese, moment is 瞬間, read しゅんかん (shunkan).
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
- n moment; instant; second
- adv just then; right at that moment; at that instant
- adv for a moment; for an instant; momentarily
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “moment”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 時 | とき toki | time; hour; moment |
| 一瞬 | いっしゅん isshun | instant; moment; for an instant |
| 一刻 | いっこく ikkoku | a moment; a minute; an instant |
| 少し | すこし sukoshi | a little while; a short time; a moment |
| 最後 | さいご saigo | once ...; the moment ... (, that's it); if ... occurs (, ... will follow) |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 一瞬 | いっしゅん isshun | instant; moment; for an instant |
| 瞬時 | しゅんじ shunji | instant; moment; (split) second |
| 瞬く | またたく matataku | to twinkle (e.g. stars); to flicker; to waver |
| 時間 | じかん jikan | time |
| 人間 | にんげん ningen | human being; human; person |
| 期間 | きかん kikan | period; term; interval |
| 年間 | ねんかん nenkan | (period of) a year |
| 仲間 | なかま nakama | companion; fellow; friend |
See also: Chinese symbol for “moment”.
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.