Browse meaningful Chinese characters for names — pronunciations, core meanings, radicals, stroke counts, and structure.
to cut; to slice; to carve
to cut; to mow; to reap
To cut; to wound; to make a ritual cut (in ancient sacrificial ceremonies).
To publish; to print; a periodical
To cut; to carve; to engrave
to cut; to divide; to measure
To cut grass; hay; fodder
To cut one's throat; to commit suicide by cutting the throat; to sever.
To cut, to wound; an ancient term for ritual bloodletting or sacrifice.
To cut; to slice. An archaic or rare character with limited modern usage.
punishment; penalty; torture
to plan; to draw (a line); to mark off
to trim; to pare; to whittle
To pick out; to extract; to gouge out.
A rare character meaning 'to cut' or 'to slice'; historically used as a surname.
An ancient punishment involving amputation of the foot or toes; to cut off feet as punishment.
to arrange in order; to line up; a series
A common Chinese surname; to kill, destroy; a type of ancient battle-axe
rule, regulation, law; then, thereupon; criterion, standard
firm; hard; strong
to create; to establish; to initiate
To chop; to cut; to strike
beginning, first, initial; elementary; original
An ancient character meaning to till the soil; to cultivate land; archaic variant related to farming.
An archaic character meaning to cut, sever, or break; used in ancient texts.
To delete; to remove; to expunge
To scrape; to pare; to shave
An archaic character meaning to divide, to separate; also used in ancient personal names.
To scrape; to pare; to shave
to judge, to decide, to sentence; to distinguish, to differentiate; a judgment, a verdict.
to separate; to part; to distinguish
To rob; to plunder; to coerce
To coerce, to threaten; to plunder, to rob; variant form of 劫 (robbery, disaster).
To plane (wood); to dig; to scrape
Sharp; beneficial; profit
To delete; to remove; to expunge
to separate; to part; to distinguish
To eradicate, eliminate, or level off; also used in classical Chinese as an adverb meaning 'only' or 'merely'.
To cut the throat; to behead; a form of execution in ancient China.
To scrape, shave, blow (wind); to plunder or extort; to apply (paste, etc.) by spreading.
An archaic or variant form; possibly related to cutting or severing actions.
to arrive; to reach; to go to
To create, to establish, to initiate; an ancient form of 創 (create).
To stab; to cut; to slaughter (animals)
to cut open; to hollow out; to disembowel
To chop; to cut; to mince
An ancient punishment involving cutting off the ears; also refers to the ears.
to make; to manufacture; to control
to brush; to clean with a brush; to scrub
Certificate, ticket, voucher, bond; a written contract or deed.
Buddhist temple or monastery; also used in the word for 'instant' or 'moment' (刹那); to brake (as in 刹车).
to stab; to prick; to pierce
to carve; to engrave; a quarter (of time)
To coerce, threaten; to plunder, rob; disaster, calamity
to cut off; to chop off; executioner
To stab; to prick; to pierce
To cut; to injure; to stab
To sharpen; to admonish earnestly; fitting, appropriate
to chop; to mince; to cut into pieces
dose; medicine; pharmaceutical preparation
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.