乃 nǎi — then, you · English

乃

nǎi

then, you

At a glance · 乃

Listen

Audio is synthesized in your browser: Mandarin for the character and Shuowen text, native voices for every translation. No downloads.

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 seen
Oracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCE
Seal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCE
Clerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CE
Regular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

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

乃字甲骨文象女性乳房或弯曲之形，本义说法不一，多用作虚词『于是、才』。金文、小篆承之。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

乃本义不明，常用为副词或代词『你』、『于是』。

Structure

乃为象形字，描摹乳形或屈曲之状，后主要作虚词。

At a glance

Pinyinnǎi

Radical丿

Strokes2

UnicodeU+4E43

Character type象形

Theme虚词

Six languages, one character

Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.

English then, you Nai was originally a pictograph of uncertain sense and is used mainly as a grammatical word meaning then or you.

Français alors, toi Nai était à l'origine un pictogramme de sens incertain et s'emploie surtout comme mot grammatical signifiant alors ou toi.

Español entonces, tú Nai era originalmente un pictograma de sentido incierto y se usa como palabra gramatical que significa entonces o tú.

العربية حينئذ، أنت ناي كان في الأصل رسماً ذا معنى غير مؤكد ويُستخدم كأداة نحوية تعني حينئذٍ أو أنت.

Русский тогда, ты Най изначально было пиктограммой неясного значения и служит грамматическим словом «тогда» или «ты».

Common words

乃至nǎi zhìup to
乃是nǎi shìis

◉ Listen