万
ten thousand, many
At a glance · 万
Evolution of the glyph
Five stages, from a sketch of the real object to regular script — tap a stage, drag the timeline, or play the animation.
Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seenOracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCESeal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCEClerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CERegular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE
⚠ Some ancient forms are not attested：oracle bone form、seal script form。No excavated oracle bone / seal artifact is attested for this character yet; we leave it blank rather than fabricate.
万字甲骨文象蝎子之形，本义为蝎，后借为数词『万』（繁體萬）。金文、小篆承之。
What the sketch shows
Origins & notes
万本义为蝎子，假借为数词表示极多。
Structure
万为象形字，描摹蝎形；其数词义为假借用法。
At a glance
Pinyinwàn
Radical一
Strokes3
UnicodeU+4E07
Character type象形
Theme数术
Six languages, one character
Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.
English
ten thousand, many
Wan was originally a pictograph of a scorpion and was borrowed as the numeral ten thousand.
Français
dix mille, beaucoup
Wan était à l'origine un pictogramme de scorpion et a été emprunté comme nombre dix mille.
Español
diez mil, muchos
Wan era originalmente un pictograma de alacrán y se tomó prestado como número diez mil.
العربية
عشرة آلاف، كثير
وان حرف رسمه عقرباً في الأصل ثم استُعير للعدد عشرة آلاف.
Русский
десять тысяч, много
Вань изначально было пиктограммой скорпиона и было заимствовано как число десять тысяч.
Common words
- 万一wàn yījust in case
- 万wànten thousand