Japanese

Adjective

ハッと ‎(-na inflection, katakana ハット, romaji hatto)

1. shocked, taken aback

Verb

ハッとする ‎(romaji hatto suru)

1. to be taken aback

   1997, Hatsume Sato, Omusubi no inori [Rice ball prayer], ISBN 9784569554105:

   ハッとしたとたん、その聖句は乳白色の雲と共に消えてゆきました。　[Reading that scripture, I was momentarily taken aback, cleansed like a milky white cloud.]

2. to realize something suddenly

   1983, Tatsuo Hagiwara, Miko to Bukkyoshi [The shrine maiden and Buddhist history], OCLC 11067555:

   熊野家の床の間の前でハッとしたのは、図の上半に虹のかけ橋式のものが堂にもそれが掲げてあった。 [What I suddenly realized there in the alcove of the Kumano house was that a magnificent bridge-like rainbow was printed in the upper half of the picture.]

Conjugation