霄 xiāo — sky; clouds · English

霄

xiāo

sky; clouds

At a glance · 霄

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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.

小篆从雨，肖声，本义为云气、天空。形声清晰，未见甲骨文。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

本义为云气、高空。

Structure

形声字，从雨（意符，与天象相关），肖（xiào）为声符。

At a glance

Pinyinxiāo

Radical雨

Strokes15

UnicodeU+9704

Character type形声

Theme天文

Six languages, one character

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

English sky; clouds The sky or clouds high above.

Français ciel; nuages Le ciel ou les nuages en hauteur.

Español cielo; nubes El cielo o las nubes en lo alto.

العربية سماء؛ غمام السماء أو الغمام العالي.

Русский небеса; облака Небо или облака высоко вверху.

Common words

云霄yún xiāosky
霄xiāoheavens

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