Meaning of 城
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- city walls
- city
- town
Measure word: 座,道,個|个
How to use 城
On its own 城 often means a walled city or the town center, but in everyday speech the general word for city is 城市 (chéngshì). It also appears in names of places and big buildings, like 长城 (Chángchéng) the Great Wall. Example: 我周末去城里买东西。(Wǒ zhōumò qù chénglǐ mǎi dōngxi.) I go into town to shop on weekends.
城 has 土 (tǔ, earth) on the left and 成 (chéng, to complete) on the right. Picture people piling up earth until the city wall is complete, and 成 also gives the sound chéng.
Common mistake: Learners often write 成 (chéng) when they mean 城, since the two sound exactly the same. Remember that the city needs the earth radical 土 on the left.
城 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
城 chéng · city walls · 9 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 城.
| 城市 | chéngshì | city; town |
| 长城 | Chángchéng | the Great Wall |
| 城里 | chénglǐ | |
| 城镇 | chéngzhèn | town; cities and towns |
| 城区 | chéngqū | city district; urban area |
| 城乡 | chéng xiāng | city and countryside |
| 商城 | shāngchéng | shopping center; department store |
| 城墙 | chéngqiáng | city wall |
| 众志成城 | zhòngzhì-chéngchéng | unity of will is an impregnable stronghold (idiom) |
| 城堡 | chéngbǎo | castle; rook (chess piece) |
| 进城 | jìnchéng | to go to town; to enter a big city (to live or work) |
| 大城市 | dàchéngshì | major city; metropolis |
Questions about 城
What does 城 mean?
城 (chéng) means "city walls; city" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 城?
城 is made of 1 character: 城 (9 strokes). That is 9 strokes in total.
Is 城 an HSK word?
Yes. 城 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 城 and 市?
城 originally means city walls and the area inside them, so it suggests a town center or a walled city. 市 (shì) originally means market and is used for official administrative cities, like 北京市 (Běijīng Shì). Together they form 城市, the normal word for city.
Is 城 used in names of shops or buildings?
Yes. Large shopping or entertainment complexes often use 城, such as 购物城 (gòuwùchéng) shopping mall or 美食城 (měishíchéng) food court. Here 城 gives the idea of a big area full of one kind of thing.