子 zǐ — offspring · English

子

zǐ

offspring

At a glance · 子

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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

「子」甲骨文象幼儿裹襁褓之形，有头双臂与足，小篆承之。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

「子」本义为婴儿、孩子，引申子女、子嗣、尊称。

Structure

象形字，象幼儿之形，本为小儿，引申子女、子时。

At a glance

Pinyinzǐ

Radical子

Strokes3

UnicodeU+5B50

Character type象形

Theme人伦

Six languages, one character

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

English offspring offspring, child; fruit, seed of; first earthly branch

Français enfant / fils Enfant, fils. «犹子比儿» : l'enfant, le neveu.

Español niño / hijo Niño, hijo. «犹子比儿»: el niño, el sobrino.

العربية طفل / ابن طفل، ابن. «犹子比儿»: الطفل، ابن الأخ.

Русский ребёнок / сын Ребёнок, сын. «犹子比儿»: дитя, племянник.

Common words

儿子ér zison
孩子hái zichild

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