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ふと (futo) Japanese meaning: suddenly | Kotomora
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ふと 空そら を 見み 上あ げる と 、 流なが れ 星ぼし が 見み え た 。
When I casually looked up at the sky, I saw a shooting star.
I suddenly remembered and called an old friend.
Usage patterns ふと 思おも う to suddenly think of something
On the train, I suddenly recalled something from the past.
ふと 気き づく to suddenly notice or realize
I suddenly realized it had already become night.
ふと 足あし を 止と める to suddenly stop walking
He suddenly stopped walking and looked up at the sky.
ふと 目め にする to happen to catch sight of something
I ended up buying a book I happened to notice at the bookstore.
Kanji 斗 Big Dipper, ten sho (vol), sake dipper Related words 突然 describes something abrupt and often externally caused, while ふと describes a soft, internal action or thought that arises without premeditation.
偶然 stresses chance or coincidence between events, while ふと focuses on the unintentional, spontaneous nature of a single action or thought.
何気なく emphasizes doing something casually with no particular purpose, whereas ふと emphasizes the sudden, unbidden appearance of a thought or impulse.
いきなり means suddenly in a more forceful or surprising way, while ふと describes a gentle, almost unnoticed shift in thought or action.
Written forms ふと Usage 97%
Standard kana spelling; the word is usually written in kana.
フト Usage 2%
不ふ 図と Usage 1%
ateji (phonetic kanji usage) rarely-used kanji form
Ateji kanji form; rarely used.
不ふ 斗と
ateji (phonetic kanji usage)
Etymology The origin is uncertain; it is a native Japanese adverb with no clear kanji etymology. The ateji spellings 不図 and 不斗 are phonetic and not related to the meaning.
rarely-used kanji form
Ateji kanji form; rarely used.