Japanese symbol for “starving”
ペコペコ
ペコペコ
Romaji: pekopeko
very hungry; starving; famished
In Japanese, starving is ペコペコ (pekopeko).
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-na very hungry; starving; famished
- adv, vs bowing repeatedly; kowtowing; bowing and scraping; being obsequious; being servile
- adj-na, adv, adv-to denting; buckling; giving (in)
Written forms: —. Readings: ペコペコ、ぺこぺこ.
Other Japanese words for “starving”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ひもじい | ひもじい himojii | very hungry; starving; ravenous |
| 腹ペコ | はらぺこ harapeko | hungry; starving |
See also: Chinese symbol for “starving”.
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.