Browse meaningful Chinese characters for names — pronunciations, core meanings, radicals, stroke counts, and structure.
Calendar — refers to systems for organizing and measuring time, including calendars,
Cloudy, overcast; ephemeral, transient; refers to the udumbara flower which blooms rarely
Tóng — describes the appearance of the sun at daybreak; the gradual brightening of the sky at dawn; also refers to dim or hazy light.
Dawn, daybreak; to know, to understand; to make known, to inform.
A character meaning 'bright, shining, brilliant'; used to describe intense light or radiance.
Shen — a rare character primarily used in personal names and place; meaning uncertain but associated with sunlight or time of day.
Zhao — a character created by Empress Wu Zetian for her own; symbolizes imperial power and enlightenment.
Bright; luminous; clear (archaic variant of 暠, which is itself a variant of 皓)
Bright; clear; to shine
Toward, facing; formerly, in the past; direction, orientation
Ancient form of 星 (xīng), meaning 'star'; used in historical texts and personal names.
Ancient form of 參 (shēn), meaning 'three stars' or 'constellation'; to participate; ginseng
Bright, shining, clear; brilliant, luminous; refers to something that is exceptionally bright or radiant.
Violent, fierce, cruel; also refers to sudden, intense actions or conditions.
Bright; clear; to dry in the sun
To gaze at; to look up at; to observe from a distance.
dim, obscure, ambiguous, vague; refers to something not clearly visible or understood.
Yè — archaic character meaning 'bright' or 'clear'; variant form of 晔; rarely used in modern Chinese.
dim, obscure, unclear; to darken, to obscure; ancient term for a solar eclipse or atmospheric dimming.
Dawn, daybreak, sunrise; the first light of morning.
Dim, obscure, dusky — describes dim light conditions or unclear vision, often
Sunset glow; twilight; dusk
Yao — to shine, to illuminate; brilliance, radiance; also refers to one of the seven luminaries in ancient Chinese astronomy
To expose to the sun; to air out; to reveal or make public
Bright; clear; brilliant (archaic character, rarely used in modern Chinese)
Ancient form of 晨 (chén), meaning morning, dawn, daybreak; also used in names for stars and constellations.
Vast, spacious, open; broad-minded, unrestrained; to neglect, to leave uncultivated.
To pile up; to fold; to repeat
Warm; clear (of weather); sunny and pleasant.
Bright; luminous; shining
Bright, clear, luminous; specifically refers to sunlight or daylight.
Sunlight, especially the first light of dawn; morning sunshine.
Sunlight shining brightly; bright, radiant light from the sun.
Dim, hazy, twilight — describes dim or hazy light conditions, often referring
Formerly; in the past; of old
Ancient variant form of 裸 (luǒ), meaning 'naked', 'bare', 'exposed'; also historically used as a variant of 臝.
Dusk, twilight — refers to the time of day when the sun; evening glow.
To sun; to dry in the sun; to bask
Hazy; dim; unclear
Describes the appearance of the moon, particularly its shape or movement; obscure character used in classical texts.
To shine upon; to illuminate; to cast light on something (archaic/rare usage).
To say; to speak; classical Chinese equivalent of 说
A rare character historically meaning 'to take'; in modern usage, primarily appears in the Cantonese slang term 曱甴 (yuēyóu)
bent, curved; crooked; wrong, unjust
To drag; to pull; to trail
to change; to replace; to experience
To drag; to pull; to trail
An ancient Chinese character meaning 'swift', 'negligent', or 'obscure'; also used as an ancient variant of 忽 (to neglect) and 笏
Why; how; when
Book — a bound collection of written or printed pages; to write; also refers to documents, calligraphy, and letters.
Cao — a Chinese surname; refers to the Cao Wei dynasty (Three Kingdoms period); also means a group, class, or government office.
Cao — an archaic variant form of the character 曹, historically used
A variant form of 昇 (rising, ascending); used in names to convey upward movement, elevation, or promotion.
Man — graceful, elegant, beautiful, prolonged; also used in transliterations.
Ancient form of 曾 (céng/zēng) — meaning 'once', 'already', 'formerly'; or as a surname meaning 'Zeng'.
Zēng — a Chinese surname; Céng — once, already, in the past; indicates past experience or action.
To replace; to substitute; to act on behalf of
most; extremely; superlative degree
If, supposing; unexpectedly; also used as a component in characters like 僭 and 簪.
Xu — ancient variant of 勖, meaning 'to encourage', 'to urge', 'to
Practical guidance for evaluating characters by radical, stroke balance, and cultural resonance.
Radicals group characters by their core semantic or structural elements. When you filter by radical, you surface characters that share meaning cues and writing patterns, making it easier to shortlist options with aligned symbolism.
Most parents stay within 6–16 strokes so signatures remain elegant and readable. Avoid extremes—overly complex forms slow writing, while ultra-simple characters may feel plain next to a more expressive partner character.
Chinese characters themselves are largely gender-neutral. Perceived gender comes from imagery and cultural associations, so review meanings and radicals together to find characters that match the tone you want.