Browse meaningful Chinese characters for names — pronunciations, core meanings, radicals, stroke counts, and structure.
arable land; cultivated fields; category
To paint; to draw; a painting
To act as; to serve as; to be
A boundary path between fields; a raised path between rice paddies; an ancient term for a footpath between fields.
Irregular, abnormal, lopsided; odd-numbered; unbalanced
Wan — a unit of land measurement in ancient China, approximately 30; also used in classical poetry to refer to cultivated fields or gardens.
Jiang — originally meaning 'boundary' or 'border'; now archaic and primarily used as a phonetic component in other characters.
Path between fields; raised path between rice paddies; boundary ridge in agricultural fields.
To grow luxuriantly; to spread; to extend
A small plot of land; a field; a piece of farmland
Lei — ancient form representing three fields or a field boundary; used in characters related to fields, boundaries, or accumulation; now rare in modern usage.
Ji — refers to the royal domain or capital region in ancient; the area surrounding the imperial capital under direct imperial administration.
A type of ancient agricultural tool used for digging or weeding; similar to a spade or hoe in function.
Liú — refers to a type of ancient farming method involving burning; also used in place names, particularly in the Jiangsu/Shanghai region.
A variant form of 疊 (dié), meaning to pile up, stack, fold,; used in historical texts and classical Chinese.
Village; hamlet; rural settlement
Lin — refers to ridges between fields; paths or boundaries in farmland; also used in place names.
Jiang — an archaic character variant of 疆 (jiāng), meaning boundary, border,; also appears in historical texts and place names.
border, boundary, frontier; territory, domain; limit, extent
chóu — a field; a category or kind; formerly, a measure of land
To split open; to cut apart; to break open (archaic character).
To pile up; to stack; to fold
To pile up; to stack; to repeat
A bolt of cloth; a measure word for cloth; foot
Quick, nimble, swift; archaic form meaning rapid movement or action.
Dan — refers to the Tanka or boat-dwelling people of Southern China; also used in 疍家 (Danjia) for their communities.
Sparse, thin, scattered, distant; to neglect, to be negligent; also used in names to imply openness, clarity, or detachment.
to dredge, to clear obstructions; sparse, thin; distant, unfamiliar
To stumble; to be hindered; to be in difficulty
To doubt, suspect, question; uncertain, doubtful; to hesitate.
Sickness radical — a pictographic character representing a sick person lying on; primarily used as a radical in characters related to illness, disease, or
Fatigue; exhaustion; tiredness
A malignant boil or furuncle; a type of acute, suppurative skin infection in traditional Chinese medicine.
Head sores; scabs; skin diseases
A boil; a furuncle; a localized skin infection.
to treat; to cure; therapy
Hemorrhoids; piles; rectal disease.
A swelling or lump; used primarily in the word 疙瘩 (gēda) meaning a knot, lump, pimple,
Remorse; guilt; chronic illness
An ancient term for a type of abdominal pain or illness, specifically
Dysentery; an archaic term for a type of diarrhea or intestinal illness.
hernia; a medical condition where an organ or tissue protrudes through an abnormal
Illness; disease; sickness (archaic usage).
Malaria; intermittent fever; refers to diseases with periodic chills and fever.
plague; pestilence; epidemic disease
sore; ulcer; festering wound
Illness, disease, sickness; specifically refers to a fever or febrile condition.
wart; cutaneous papilloma; a benign skin growth caused by viral infection.
scar; scar tissue; a mark left on the skin or other tissue after a wound,
scabies; a contagious skin disease caused by mites that burrow into the skin,
An ancient Chinese character meaning ulcer, sore, or abscess; also used in some historical texts to refer to a type of
Sickness, illness, disease; to be ill or sick; to suffer from disease.
A term referring to a type of ulcer or sore; also used in describing certain medical conditions.
A variant form of the character 瘁, meaning exhausted, weary, or overworked; also used in medical contexts to refer to certain diseases.
A flaw, defect, or illness; archaic variant of 痹 meaning numbness or paralysis.
epidemic, plague, pestilence — refers to widespread infectious diseases affecting a population.
Scrofula — a tuberculous infection of the lymph nodes in the neck,
Spasm, convulsion — refers to involuntary muscle contractions or spasms, often used
sore; skin ulcer; wound
mad; insane; crazy
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.