Browse Characters — Learn Chinese Through Stories

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

幺

yāo

This three-stroke character — the smallest indepe

乇

zhé

This 'blade of grass' character is extinct as a wo

乂

yì

This 2-stroke character once depicted cosmic cross

乀

fú

It’s not a word, has zero strokes, and appears on

丿

piě

This one-stroke radical looks like a casual slash

丼

dòng

This 'bowl' character is actually a Japanese-modif

丷

bā

It looks like 'eight' and sounds like 'eight' — b

丶

zhǔ

This one-stroke radical — the smallest in Chinese

丵

zhuó

This 10-stroke glyph looks like tangled grass — a

丳

chǎn

This character looks like two sticks with a tiny b

丱

guàn

This five-stroke character isn’t abstract — it’

丮

jǐ

This ancient 'two-handed grasp' character vanished

丫

yā

Born as a pictograph of a forked tree branch, 丫 e

丨

gǔn

It’s not a word — it’s the cosmic plumb line: a

丞

chéng

Originally a kneeling servant lifting someone up,

丕

pī

A five-stroke minimalist masterpiece: one line ove

丏

miǎn

A four-stroke architectural haiku: one horizontal

丌

jī

This 'pedestal' character doesn’t stand alone —

丂

kǎo

This two-stroke 'breath' character never appears a

鹮

huán

A rare 18-stroke bird character whose 'sunlight +

鳤

guǎn

A meticulously engineered scientific character —

鳚

wèi

This 'blenny' character hides a secret: its right

鿏

mài

This 'element' character hides a bird (鳥) — not

筲

shāo

This 'basket' character hides a phonetic secret:

庞

páng

Originally picturing a dragon under a vast roof,

党

dǎng

This 'party' character began as a bronze-age image

黎

lí

This character looks like millet + fire + person

鸽

gē

Its 'harmony + bird' structure reflects how ancien