Browse meaningful Chinese characters for names — pronunciations, core meanings, radicals, stroke counts, and structure.
Protruding; prominent; rugged
To kneel; to prostrate oneself; also refers to a rocky mountain in ancient texts.
Obstruct; hinder; block
To press or rub against something hard; to feel uncomfortable due to contact with a hard object.
To mark with a groove; to carve; to engrave
Whetstone; grindstone; used for sharpening tools or weapons.
To grind, polish, or sharpen; to research or study thoroughly; to investigate meticulously.
Castle; fort; watchtower
Peng — describes the sound of stones hitting each other; also used in classical texts to mean rushing, urgent, or vehement.
Selenium — a chemical element (symbol Se, atomic number 34); a nonmetal with properties intermediate between sulfur and tellurium.
A type of coral stone or coral reef; used in specific regional contexts, particularly in Taiwanese place names.
Hong — the sound of a large object collapsing or falling; also used in names and place names.
large, great; abundant; master's degree
gorge, narrow pass between mountains; also used in place names
Barren — describes land that is barren, unproductive, or hard and infertile; also refers to things that are poor in quality.
A dialectal character used in Min Nan (Southern Min) Chinese, primarily meaning
millstone; to grind; hard
Bridge — specifically refers to a stone bridge or arch bridge; used in place names, most notably Qiaokou District in Wuhan.
This character is extremely rare and archaic. It appears to be a
Kēng — the sound of striking stones; describes a sound of impact; figuratively, narrow-minded or obstinate.
Niter, saltpeter — a mineral salt (potassium nitrate) used historically in gunpowder,
Què — archaic term referring to a type of hard stone or; also used in ancient texts to describe something firm or solid.
A tool used for smoothing or polishing jade; also refers to a type of whetstone or polishing stone.
Describes the sound of stones striking together; a clanging or rattling sound of rocks.
Hong — onomatopoeic character representing the sound of stones striking or heavy; archaic and rare in modern usage.
An ancient character meaning stone or rock; appears in historical texts and place names.
A rare character referring to a type of rock or stone formation; used in specific contexts related to geology or topography.
Xia — refers to a gorge or narrow pass between mountains; also used in place names.
Mǎng — refers to coral; also appears in some ancient texts and place names.
Lubricating stone; a type of stone used for polishing or sharpening; also refers to a rocky or stony place.
A type of millstone; grinding stone; whetstone.
chariot — specifically refers to a type of chariot or vehicle; also used in the name of a precious stone (chrysoprase).
To pick; to pluck; to gather
A large, flat, heavy stone roller or rammer used for tamping earth,; historically used in construction and agriculture.
Sulfur — a yellow chemical element (S) with a strong odor, used
Hard; rigid; stiff
Máng — refers to mirabilite (Glauber's salt), a mineral used in traditional
Definite, certain, real, true; to confirm, to verify; firm, solid.
Inkstone — a stone mortar used for grinding and containing ink in
Shā — used in the compound word 硰石 (shā shí), referring to
Describes the appearance of stones or rocks; used in classical texts to depict rugged or uneven stone formations.
Valley — refers to a ravine or gully, often used in place
A Korean surname; also used in some place names in Korea. Not a standard Chinese
Oyster — refers to the shellfish, particularly in Japanese contexts (e.g., 硴き,
Sal ammoniac — refers to ammonium chloride, a white crystalline salt used
Uneven, rugged, or rough surface; also refers to a type of stone or rock formation.
alkali — refers to alkaline substances in chemistry; also used in words related to bases and alkaline compounds.
硹 — a place name character, used in historical geographical names.
To carve, chisel, or engrave (especially on stone or jade); to work on hard materials with tools.
Hard stone; firm, solid, unyielding; to pound, to strike.
Boron — a chemical element (symbol B, atomic number 5); also refers to borax and boron compounds.
Yan — a rare character referring to a type of rock or; obscure and rarely used in modern Chinese.
To weigh down; to press down; a weight
The sound of striking stones; a clattering or knocking sound, especially from rocks or stones.
Chisel; to chisel or carve stone; also refers to the sound of striking stone.
Go — a strategic board game, also known as weiqi; the character specifically refers to the game pieces or the game itself.
To crush or pulverize; to break into pieces; a term for grinding or smashing materials.
Qing — a character used primarily in place names, particularly referring to; often found in geographical names in Taiwan and other Chinese-speaking regions.
Deep and dense appearance of forests or woods; describes lush, thick vegetation.
Large rock; stone used for construction or as a foundation.
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.