Browse meaningful Chinese characters for names — pronunciations, core meanings, radicals, stroke counts, and structure.
To loathe, detest, dislike intensely; to be fed up with; to be weary of
servant, footman; fellow, guy (often derogatory or familiar); mutual, together
An ancient variant form of 曆 (calendar) and 歷 (to experience; to pass through). Used historically for concepts related to time, calendars, and
Factory, workshop, plant — an industrial building where goods are manufactured or
Ancient character meaning a rocky cliff or precipice; also used in ancient place names.
Severe, strict, rigorous; stern; fierce
Strict, severe, rigorous; stern; tight
Operculum — the hard protective plate or lid that covers the opening; also refers to a lid or cover in botanical and anatomical contexts.
Source — refers to the origin, source, or headspring of a river; the fundamental cause or root of something.
private, secret; ancient form of 私 (private); used as a component in many characters.
Ancient form of 肱 (gōng), meaning 'upper arm', 'forearm'; also an archaic character.
An ancient form of 鄰 (neighbor); also read as miǎo meaning distant.
An ancient character meaning spear; also used as a variant form in certain contexts.
To go; to leave; to depart
to go; to leave; to depart
A rare character used in Korean given names; phonetic component for 'er' sound.
A pictographic character representing piled-up earth or stones; an ancient form meaning to pile up or accumulate.
To tap lightly; to poke; to nudge
county — an administrative division; historically, a territory governed by a feudal lord.
An ancient character meaning 'spindle' or 'small pottery wheel'; used as a phonetic component in other characters.
Three (financial form of 三); used in financial contexts to prevent fraud.
To participate, join; to refer, consult; ginseng
Ginseng — a medicinal root; to participate; to join
Three — the formal, complex form of the number three; used in financial and legal documents to prevent fraud.
To participate; to take part in; to join
Ai — refers to dense, heavy clouds; also used in the term for a type of jade (叆叇 àidài)
Dense, thick clouds; obscure, dim; used almost exclusively in the word 叆叇 (ài dài) meaning 'dense clouds
again; also; both... and...
fork; cross; intersect
to reach; to come up to; and
friend; friendly; to befriend
double; twin; pair
to turn over; reverse; oppose
To collect; to gather; to receive
An archaic character meaning to decide, to judge; also an ancient form of 夬 (guài), which relates to hexagrams in
An archaic character meaning to walk with vigor or to stride; also appears as a variant or component in other characters.
to send out; to issue; to emit
An ancient character meaning 'to follow' or 'to comply'; also used as a variant form in certain contexts.
An ancient form of 事 (shì), meaning 'matter', 'affair', 'to serve'.
uncle (father's younger brother); term of address for a man slightly younger than one's father; third among brothers
To connect; to join; entangled appearance
to take; to get; to obtain
to receive; to accept; to suffer
to change; to transform; to become different
to narrate, to recount, to talk, to converse; also used in words related to description and order/sequence.
false, fake, counterfeit; to borrow or pretend.
to betray; to rebel; to revolt
Old man; elder; aged person (archaic variant of 叟).
A variant form of the character 急, meaning urgent, hurried, or anxious.
Ancient character meaning 'respectful', 'reverent', or 'dignified'; also used in ancient texts.
Old man; elderly person; venerable senior.
To pile up; to fold; to repeat
Wise, sagacious, astute — refers to profound wisdom, keen insight, and deep; often used to describe exceptional intelligence and foresight.
Cong — thicket, grove; to gather, collect; crowd, collection
mouth; opening; entrance
ancient, old, archaic; reason, cause; surname
Sentence; phrase; clause
Other, another, separate; additionally; used to indicate an alternative or different option.
An archaic character meaning 'to cut apart, to divide'; now obsolete and rarely used in modern Chinese.
To chatter, talk excessively; to receive undeservedly (in 叨光, 叨教); to nag (in 叨唠).
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.