Pronunciation

Characters pronounced zhao.

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

All 11 characters are listed below. Each links to its own page with meaning, structure, and names that use it.

兆 zhào omen; million; mega; also trillion. China = million; Japan and Taiwan = trillion 召 zhào imperial decree; summon 照 zhào bright shine, illumine, reflect 罩 zhào basket for catching fish; cover 肇 zhào begin, commence, originate 赵 zhào classic surname; ancient state 招 zhāo beckon, summon; recruit, levy 昭 zhāo bright bright, luminous; illustrious 找 zhǎo natural search, seek, look for; find 沼 zhǎo natural lake, fishpond, swamps 爪 zhǎo claw, nail, talon; animal feet

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.