Meaning & readings

gloom, depression, melancholy, luxuriant

On’yomi ウツ
Kun’yomi うっ.する、ふさ.ぐ、しげ.る

Origin

This character depicts a bundle of plants or trees growing densely together. The middle section shows layered vegetation, while the surrounding strokes represent leaves and branches packed closely. From this image of thick, tangled growth that blocks light and movement, the meaning expanded to include the feeling of being trapped or blocked emotionally—that sense of gloom and depression when things feel crowded and suffocating. The luxuriant sense comes directly from the original picture of abundant, dense plant growth.

AI-generated (claude-haiku-4-5), not yet reviewed. Formation type (automated guess): Pictographic or simple.

29 strokes

Components

This character is treated as a single, undivided shape (鬱).

  • meaning part

Common words

  • 憂鬱 ゆううつ depression; melancholy
  • 鬱陶しい うっとうしい gloomy (e.g. mood); depressing

Reference

Strokes
29
Kangxi radical
192
Grade
Jōyō (secondary school)
Frequency rank
Former JLPT
Unicode
U+09B31