孩 meaning and stroke order
Baby, child; children
How to write 孩, stroke by stroke
9 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
Meaning of 孩
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (bound form) child
How 孩 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Child.
子 gives the meaning and 亥 hints at the sound.
Radical: 子 (son), shared by 30 characters on this site.
How to remember 孩
孩 (hái) puts 子 (zǐ, child) on the left to give the meaning and 亥 (hài) on the right to give the sound. Picture a small child 子 standing next to 亥, which whispers the sound hai.
孩 is a bound form, so it almost always appears inside words like 孩子 (háizi), 小孩 (xiǎohái), 男孩 (nánhái) and 女孩 (nǚhái). Example: 他有两个孩子。(Tā yǒu liǎng gè háizi.) He has two children.
Common mistake: Learners often write 孩 alone to mean child, but it needs a partner such as 孩子 or 小孩. Also watch the tone: 孩 is second tone hái, while its sound part 亥 is fourth tone hài.
Common words with 孩
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 孩子 | háizi | child | HSK 1 |
| 女孩儿 | nǚháir | erhua form of 女孩[nu : 3 hai2] | HSK 1 |
| 小孩儿 | xiǎoháir | erhua variant of 小孩[xiao3 hai2] | HSK 1 |
| 男孩儿 | nánháir | erhua form of 男孩[nan2 hai2] | HSK 1 |
| 女孩 | nǚhái | girl; lass | |
| 小孩 | xiǎohái | child | |
| 男孩 | nánhái | boy | |
| 女孩子 | nǚháizi | girl | |
| 小孩子 | xiǎoháizi | child | |
| 男孩子 | nánháizi | boy | |
| 小屁孩 | xiǎopìhái | kid; youngster | |
| 孩童 | háitóng | child | |
| 孩子气 | háiziqì | childish; childlike; childishness | |
| 孩儿 | háir | child |
孩 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 孩
How many strokes are in 孩?
孩 is written with 9 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 孩 mean?
孩 (hái) means baby, child; children. A common word with it is 孩子 (háizi), meaning "child".
How do you pronounce 孩?
孩 is pronounced hái, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 孩?
The radical of 孩 is 子, which carries the idea of "son". Dictionaries list 孩 under this radical.
Is 孩 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 孩 is part of the HSK 1 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 1.
What is the difference between 孩子 and 小孩?
Both mean child. 孩子 is also used for your own son or daughter at any age, as in 我的孩子 (wǒ de háizi). 小孩 focuses on someone being young and is a bit more casual.
Why do people say 小孩儿 or 女孩儿 with an extra 儿?
The 儿 is erhua, a northern Chinese habit of adding an r sound. 小孩儿 (xiǎoháir) means the same as 小孩 and just sounds more colloquial, especially in Beijing.