Japanese symbol for “thumping”
動悸
どうき
Romaji: douki
palpitation (of the heart); pounding; throbbing; thumping
In Japanese, thumping is 動悸, read どうき (douki).
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 palpitation (of the heart); pounding; throbbing; thumping
Written forms: 動悸、動気. Readings: どうき.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “thumping”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ゴツンゴツン | ゴツンゴツン gotsungotsun | thumping; banging |
| 心悸 | しんき shinki | palpitation (of the heart); pounding; throbbing |
| バクバク | バクバク bakubaku | pounding (of one's heart); throbbing; thumping |
| どくん | どくん dokun | heavy heartbeat; thumping; pounding |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 活動 | かつどう katsudou | activity (of a person, organization, animal, volcano, etc.); action; operation |
| 行動 | こうどう koudou | action; conduct; behaviour |
| 運動 | うんどう undou | exercise; physical training; workout |
| 動物 | どうぶつ doubutsu | animal |
| 移動 | いどう idou | movement; transfer; migration |
| 自動 | じどう jidou | automatic |
| 心悸亢進 | しんきこうしん shinkikoushin | palpitations; tachycardia |
| 心悸 | しんき shinki | palpitation (of the heart); pounding; throbbing |
See also: Chinese symbol for “thumping”.
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.