无 wú — negative · English

无

wú

negative

At a glance · 无

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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。No excavated oracle bone / seal artifact is attested for this character yet; we leave it blank rather than fabricate.

「无」繁体「無」甲骨文象人持舞具起舞，后假借为有无之无。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

「无」本为「舞」初文，假借为有无、没有，沿用至今。

Structure

「無」象人执物而舞，假借为有无之无；简作无。

At a glance

Pinyinwú

Radical一

Strokes4

UnicodeU+65E0

Character type会意

Theme虚词

Six languages, one character

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

English negative negative, no, not; Kangxi radical 71

Français sans / ne... pas Sans, ne pas. «籍甚无竟» : sans fin.

Español sin / no Sin, no. «籍甚无竟»: sin fin.

العربية بلا / لا بلا، لا. «籍甚无竟»: بلا انتهاء.

Русский без / не Без, не. «籍甚无竟»: без конца.

Common words

无wúnone
无论wú lùnregardless

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