Browse Chinese Characters — Learn Chinese Through Stories

Every character has an origin. Discover the pictographs, myths, and history behind each Chinese character — with pinyin, stroke order, HSK level, and audio pronunciation.

ruì

锐 (ruì) means 'acute' in Chinese — a HSK 6 char

xián

The Chinese character 衔 (xián) means 'bit' — or

míng

铭 means 'to engrave'—not just on metal, but in m

tóng

11-stroke character 铜 (tóng) carries the meaning

gōu

The Chinese character 钩 (gōu) means 'to hook' —

gài

How do you say 'calcium' in Chinese? It's 钙 (gài

chāo

钞 is a HSK 6 Chinese character pronounced chāo.

dùn

Think: 'Dull tool = Dùn — both start with D and

dīng

钉 • dīng • 'nail' — HSK 6 Chinese character w

xìn

How do you say 'quarrel' in Chinese? It's 衅 (xìn

niàng

Explore the meaning of 酿 (niàng): 'to ferment' i

yùn

How do you say 'to brew' in Chinese? It's 酝 (yùn

Master 酷 (kù), HSK level 6 — the Chinese word f

chóu

Write 酬 correctly: 13 strokes, pronounced chóu,

Learning Chinese? 酗 (xù) is one of the essential

zhuó

10-stroke character 酌 (zhuó) carries the meaning

zhèng

The Chinese character 郑 (zhèng) means 'Zheng', a

鄙 (bǐ) means 'rustic' — a nuanced term rooted i

láng

Discover 郎 (HSK 6): the Chinese character for 'mi

How do you say 'strongly fragrant' in Chinese? It'

mài

Write 迈 correctly: 6 strokes, pronounced mài, me

liáo

Think: 'Liaoning = Liáo + Ning' — just drop the

qiān

迁 • qiān • 'to move' — HSK 6 Chinese characte

zhē

Discover 遮 (HSK 6): the Chinese character for 'to

zāo

How do you say 'to meet by chance' in Chinese? It'