城 chéng — city, wall · English

城

chéng

city, wall

At a glance · 城

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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

⚠ 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.

小篆从土成声，形声字，本指环绕都邑的城墙。隶楷作「城」。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

「城」本指城墙，引申为城池、城市。

Structure

形声字，土为意符，成为声符。

At a glance

Pinyinchéng

Radical土

Strokes9

UnicodeU+57CE

Character type形声

Theme建筑

Six languages, one character

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

English city, wall A city wall; a city, town.

Français ville, mur Un mur de ville; une ville, cité.

Español ciudad, muro Un muro de ciudad; una ciudad.

العربية مدينة، سور مدينة أو سور المدينة.

Русский город, стена Городская стена; город, городище.

Common words

城市chéng shìcity
城chéngcity wall

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