Japanese symbol for “sudden”
急
きゅう
Romaji: kyuu
sudden; abrupt; unexpected
In Japanese, sudden is 急, read きゅう (kyuu).
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 sudden; abrupt; unexpected
- adj-na urgent; pressing
- adj-na steep; sharp; precipitous
- adj-na rapid; swift; fast
- n emergency; crisis; danger
- n urgency; hurrying; haste
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “sudden”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 急激 | きゅうげき kyuugeki | sudden; abrupt; rapid |
| 突然 | とつぜん totsuzen | abrupt; sudden; unexpected |
| 不意 | ふい fui | sudden; abrupt; unexpected |
| 唐突 | とうとつ toutotsu | abrupt; sudden |
| 急遽 | きゅうきょ kyuukyo | sudden; abrupt |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 緊急 | きんきゅう kinkyuu | urgency; emergency |
| 急速 | きゅうそく kyuusoku | rapid (e.g. progress) |
| 急激 | きゅうげき kyuugeki | sudden; abrupt; rapid |
| 特急 | とっきゅう tokkyuu | limited express (train for which a limited-express ticket is required) |
| 急遽 | きゅうきょ kyuukyo | hurriedly; in a hurry; hastily |
| 急増 | きゅうぞう kyuuzou | rapid increase; sharp rise; proliferation |
See also: Chinese symbol for “sudden”.
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.