Browse meaningful Chinese characters for names — pronunciations, core meanings, radicals, stroke counts, and structure.
Socks — hosiery worn on the feet.
A type of ancient raincoat made of straw or similar material; refers to a coarse outer garment worn in ancient times.
Hem, lower edge of a garment; the bottom part of clothing such as skirts, coats, or robes.
To tuck up the front of one's garment to hold or carry; to gather up; to collect.
Collar; to expose, to reveal, to make manifest.
lining (of clothing); undergarment; to line
Worn-out, ragged, tattered; refers to shabby clothing or appearance.
The overlapping part of trousers; trouser legs; to tread on
To attack by surprise; to raid; to inherit
Long decorative streamers or tassels on ancient Chinese clothing; decorative hanging ribbons.
A type of traditional Chinese garment, specifically a long gown or robe; also refers to a Buddhist monk's robe.
Pleat, fold, crease — refers to folds in fabric or paper, especially
Uncouth, slovenly, careless in dress and appearance; used primarily in the compound 褦襶.
Tasuki — a cord or sash used in traditional Japanese clothing to; also refers to the X-shaped back strap on a Japanese happi coat.
Beautiful, elegant; also refers to a hairstyle or hair ornament.
The appearance of feathers or hair hanging down; used to describe the shaggy, flowing appearance of garments or decorations.
raw silk; silk floss; thick silk fabric
A loop or strap for fastening; a knot or tie; to fasten or secure
Sleeve — refers to the sleeve of a garment, particularly the wide,
Ragged, tattered clothing; refers to worn-out or shabby garments.
To cover; to wrap; a cover
West; Western; occident
A rare character variant of 西 (west), primarily used as a radical
To want; to need; to require
To overturn; to throw down; to exhaust
Qin/Tan — a surname; also means 'deep', 'profound', 'extensive', or 'to extend/spread'.
To cover; to conceal; to hide
To cover; to overturn; to capsize
hegemony, supremacy, dominance; to rule by force; champion, leader
To examine; to investigate; to verify
To bridle; to restrain; to control
Bridle, halter; to restrain, control; to stay, lodge
to see; to meet; to appear
To observe; to watch; to look at
An archaic variant of 弁 (biàn), referring to a type of ancient; also used in historical texts.
A rare character meaning 'to peep' or 'to spy'; also used in the name of a place in ancient China.
Rule, regulation, standard; to plan, to scheme; compasses (for drawing circles).
To perceive, to understand; to awaken, to realize; variant form of 覺 (jué/jiào).
To lay flat; to arrange in order; to set in a row.
To look for; to search; to seek out
To seek; to look for; to search
To seek, to look for, to search — an archaic or variant
To hide; to conceal; to avoid being seen
To look at; to view; to regard
To peek; to spy; to look stealthily.
To spy on; to observe secretly; to peep
To observe carefully; to examine in detail. An archaic character rarely used in modern Chinese.
To perceive; to become aware; to awaken
To examine carefully; to scrutinize; to survey
To gaze from afar; to look into the distance; to survey
To observe carefully; to scrutinize; to examine closely (archaic character).
To stare at each other; to look at one another intently; an ancient character representing mutual gazing.
To observe carefully; to examine; to scrutinize (archaic/rare character).
A rare character meaning 'to look at, to observe'; archaic and not in common modern use.
Xi — a male shaman or wizard in ancient Chinese folk religion; a sorcerer who communicates with spirits.
To appear suddenly; to flash or glance briefly; to make a sudden appearance.
To look at with a gentle or pleasant expression; to gaze kindly.
Frightened appearance; to stare in fear or alarm; a look of terror.
to have a shameless face; to brazen something out; to look unashamed.
to covet; to desire something that belongs to someone else; to have ambitious designs
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.