Japanese symbol for “waving”
ひらひら
ひらひら
Romaji: hirahira
fluttering; flapping; waving
In Japanese, waving is ひらひら (hirahira).
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, vs fluttering; flapping; waving
- adv, adv-to, vs flickering (light, flame, etc.)
- n frill; piece of thin material
Written forms: —. Readings: ひらひら、ヒラヒラ.
Other Japanese words for “waving”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| くねくね | くねくね kunekune | winding; meandering; wriggling |
| 閃き | ひらめき hirameki | waving (e.g. of a flag in the wind) |
| ピラピラ | ピラピラ pirapira | fluttering (cloth, paper, etc.); waving; small fluttering object |
| 翩翻 | へんぽん henpon | fluttering (flag, etc.); flapping; waving |
| 飄々 | ひょうひょう hyouhyou | fluttering (in the wind); waving; flapping |
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.