Japanese symbol for “surprisingly”
案外
あんがい
Romaji: angai
unexpectedly; surprisingly
In Japanese, surprisingly is 案外, read あんがい (angai).
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
- adv, adv-to unexpectedly; surprisingly
- adj-na unexpected; unanticipated; unforeseen; surprising
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “surprisingly”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 随分 | ずいぶん zuibun | very; extremely; surprisingly |
| 何と | なんと nanto | surprisingly; to my amazement; believe it or not |
| 結構 | けっこう kekkou | rather; quite; fairly |
| 驚いたことに | おどろいたことに odoroitakotoni | surprisingly; astonishingly; amazingly |
| 驚くほど | おどろくほど odorokuhodo | to a surprising degree; to a remarkable extent; surprisingly |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 提案 | ていあん teian | proposal; proposition; suggestion |
| 案内 | あんない annai | guidance; leading (the way); showing around |
| 法案 | ほうあん houan | bill (law); measure |
| 案件 | あんけん anken | matter (to discuss); item (on the agenda); issue |
| 案の定 | あんのじょう annojou | as expected; just as one thought; as feared |
| 海外 | かいがい kaigai | foreign; abroad; overseas |
| 外国 | がいこく gaikoku | foreign country |
| 以外 | いがい igai | excluding; except (for); apart from |
See also: Chinese symbol for “surprisingly”.
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.