Pronunciation

Characters pronounced shou.

9 name characters share this pronunciation across tones. Pinyin alone does not identify a character; choose the Hanzi you want.

All 9 characters are listed below. Each links to its own page with meaning, structure, and names that use it.

兽 shòu Natural · Strong beast, animal; bestial 受 shòu Warm receive, accept, get; bear, stand 寿 shòu Warm · Classic · Generous old age, long life; lifespan 授 shòu Scholarly · Warm · Virtuous give to, transmit; confer 瘦 shòu thin, emaciated, lean; meager 收 shōu Natural · Calm gather together, collect; harvest 守 shǒu Loyal · Calm · Virtuous defend, protect, guard, conserve 手 shǒu Warm · Modern hand 首 shǒu Bright · Ambitious head; first; leader, chief; a poem; Kangxi radical 185

Why several characters share one pinyin

Mandarin has many homophones. Tone narrows the sound, but different characters can still share the same syllable and tone. The Hanzi is the identity; the pinyin is only the sound.

Browse all name characters or use Search to look up a character by meaning.