King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “transient”

Romaji: ada
vain; futile; transient; frivolous

In Japanese, transient is , read (ada).

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

  1. adj-na, n vain; futile; transient; frivolous

Kanji and stroke order

on foot, junior, emptiness
on: ト
kun: いたずら、あだ
10 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “transient”

WordReadingMeaning
はかない hakanaifleeting; transient; short-lived
かと katotransient
ひじょうちゅう hijouchuutransient
いっかせい ikkaseitransient (symptom, phenomenon); temporary; passing
ほうまつてき houmatsutekitransient; passing; fleeting

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
せいと seitopupil; student; schoolchild
とほ tohowalking; going on foot
きょうと kyoutobeliever; adherent
しと shitoapostle; disciple
しんと shintolayman; believer; adherent
がくと gakutostudent; follower; students and pupils

See also: Chinese symbol for “transient”.

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.