Browse "Places" 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.

高楼

gāo lóu

‘高楼’ literally combines ‘高’ (gāo), meaning

南极

nán jí

南极 (nán jí) literally means 'south extreme' —

楚国

Chǔ guó

Chǔ guó (the ancient State of Chu) was one of th

扶梯

fú tī

扶梯 (fú tī) literally means 'to support + ladde

阶梯

jiē tī

阶梯 literally combines 阶 (jiē), meaning 'step'

云梯

yún tī

‘云梯’ literally means ‘cloud ladder’—a compo

梯子

tī zi

梯子 (tī zi) is a common noun meaning 'ladder' —

楼梯

lóu tī

楼梯 (lóu tī) literally combines 楼 (lóu), mean

查阅

chá yuè

查阅 (chá yuè) is a formal, written verb meaning

铁板

tiě bǎn

铁板 (tiě bǎn) literally means 'iron plate' — a

门板

mén bǎn

‘门板’ literally combines ‘门’ (mén, ‘door’

地板

dì bǎn

地板 (dì bǎn) literally combines 地 (dì), meani

李园

Lǐ Yuán

Li Garden (Lǐ Yuán) is a proper noun commonly us

姓李

xìng Lǐ

'Xìng Lǐ' literally means 'surnamed Li' and func

李白

Lǐ Bái

Li Bai (701–762 CE) was one of the most celebrate

易主

yì zhǔ

‘易主’ literally means ‘to change master’ —

文化

wén huà

‘Wén huà’ (文化) literally combines ‘wén’ (

故乡

gù xiāng

‘Gùxiāng’ literally combines ‘gù’ (meaning

据点

jù diǎn

‘据点’ (jù diǎn) literally combines 据 (jù),

搬走

bān zǒu

搬走 (bān zǒu) is a compound verb meaning 'to mo

搬来

bān lái

搬来 (bān lái) is a verb meaning 'to move here'

搬出

bān chū

搬出 (bān chū) is a separable verb meaning 'to m

搬进

bān jìn

搬进 (bān jìn) is a compound verb meaning 'to mo

搬家

bān jiā

搬家 (bān jiā) literally means 'to move (bān) h

换乘

huàn chéng

‘换乘’ is a verb meaning ‘to transfer’—specif

兑换

duì huàn

‘兑换’ is a verb meaning 'to exchange'—most com

扫墓

sǎo mù

‘扫墓’ (sǎo mù) literally means ‘to sweep a g

京剧

jīng jù

‘Jīngjù’ (Peking opera) is China’s most renow

流连忘返

liú lián wàng fǎn

‘流连忘返’ is a four-character idiom describing

张贴

zhāng tiē

张贴 (zhāng tiē) is a compound verb meaning 'to

地带

dì dài

‘地带’ (dì dài) literally combines ‘地’ (dì

集市

jí shì

集市 (jí shì) literally combines 集 (jí), meani

市价

shì jià

市价 (shì jià) literally combines 市 (shì), mea

市长

shì zhǎng

'Shì zhǎng' literally combines 'shì' (city) and

市民

shì mín

‘市民’ literally combines ‘市’ (shì), meaning

市区

shì qū

市区 (shì qū) literally combines 市 (shì), mean

市场

shì chǎng

市场 (shì chǎng) literally combines 市 (shì), m

黄山

Huáng Shān

Mount Huangshan (Huáng Shān) is one of China’s

山东

Shān Dōng

Shān Dōng (山东) is the name of a coastal provin

山水

shān shuǐ

Shān shuǐ literally means 'mountain-water' and r