Browse "Animals" Characters

Every character has an origin. Discover the pictographs, myths, and history behind each Chinese character — with pinyin, stroke order, HSK level, and audio pronunciation.

吹牛

chuī niú

'Chuī niú' literally means 'to blow a cow'—a vi

对牛弹琴

duì niú tán qín

'To play the lute to an ox' is a classical Chinese

老黄牛

lǎo huáng niú

‘Lǎo huáng niú’ literally means ‘old yellow

水牛

shuǐ niú

水牛 (shuǐ niú) literally means 'water ox' — 水

牛肉

niú ròu

‘Niú ròu’ literally means ‘cow meat’ and ref

游动

yóu dòng

游动 (yóu dòng) is a verb meaning 'to move or sw

儿歌

ér gē

‘Ér gē’ literally means ‘child song’ — ‘é

守望

shǒu wàng

守望 is a compound verb meaning 'to keep watch' or

最快

zuì kuài

最快 (zuì kuài) literally means 'most fast' and

最小

zuì xiǎo

最小 (zuì xiǎo) is an adjective meaning 'smalles

缓慢

huǎn màn

缓慢 is an adjective meaning 'slow' or 'sluggish',

帮派

bāngpài

帮派 (bāngpài) is a compound noun meaning 'cliqu

希有

xī yǒu

‘希有’ (xī yǒu) is an adjective meaning 'rare'

希世

xī shì

‘希世’ (xī shì) is an elegant, literary adject

适宜

shì yí

适宜 means 'suitable' or 'appropriate', emphasizin

完蛋

wán dàn

'完蛋' (wán dàn) is a vivid, informal verb meani

始作俑者

shǐ zuò yǒng zhě

‘始作俑者’ literally means ‘the first person to

原始

yuán shǐ

'原始' (yuán shǐ) is an adjective meaning 'primi

牛奶

niú nǎi

牛奶 literally means 'cow's milk' — 牛 (niú) mea

渔夫

yú fū

渔夫 (yú fū) literally combines two characters:

千变万化

qiān biàn wàn huà

‘千变万化’ literally means ‘a thousand changes

互助

hù zhù

‘互助’ (hù zhù) literally means ‘mutual aid’

准星

zhǔn xīng

准星 (zhǔn xīng) literally combines 准 (zhǔn),

共存

gòng cún

‘共存’ literally means ‘together exist’ — com

鱼缸

yú gāng

‘鱼缸’ (yú gāng) literally combines ‘鱼’ (y

钓鱼

diào yú

钓鱼 (diào yú) literally means 'to hook fish' —

鱼肉

yú ròu

‘鱼肉’ literally means ‘fish meat’ and refers

鲨鱼

shā yú

Shāyú (shark) is a compound noun formed by combi

鲤鱼

lǐ yú

鲤鱼 (lǐ yú) is a common noun meaning 'carp'—a

金鱼

jīn yú

‘金鱼’ literally means ‘gold fish’ — combinin

正声

zhēng shēng

‘Zhēng shēng’ (正声) literally combines 正 (zh

正祭

zhēng jì

‘正祭’ (zhēng jì) refers to the main ancestral

自然

zì rán

‘自然’ (zì rán) literally combines 自 (zì, 's

从句

cóngjù

‘从句’ (cóngjù) literally means ‘subordinate

从中

cóngzhōng

从中 literally combines 从 (cóng, 'from') and 中

所属

suǒ shǔ

所属 literally means 'that which belongs to' and f

所有

suǒ yǒu

所有 (suǒ yǒu) literally combines 所 (suǒ), a c

动作

dòng zuò

动作 (dòng zuò) is a noun meaning 'movement' or

可观

kě guān

可观 (kě guān) is an adjective meaning 'impressi

可爱

kě ài

'可爱' (kě ài) is an adjective meaning 'cute' or