Many of the first Chinese characters began as pictures. 人 (rén) is a person walking, 山 (shān) is three mountain peaks, 日 (rì) was a sun with a dot in the middle and 木 (mù) is a tree with its branches and roots. This page collects 36 classic pictographs, 象形字 (xiàng xíng zì), from 人, 口 (kǒu) and 手 (shǒu) to 马 (mǎ), 鱼 (yú) and 竹 (zhú), with pinyin, meaning, stroke count and a one-line note on what each one pictures, and prints them in two sheets of 18. Some are easier to see in traditional script, so the table also shows 馬 (mǎ), 鳥 (niǎo), 魚 (yú) and 門 (mén). Children can trace each character and then draw the picture next to it; adult beginners get a memorable first set of building blocks, since these shapes reappear inside thousands of later characters, like 木 inside 林 (lín) and 森 (sēn). Print it free or save the PDF, and guess the picture before you read the note.
36 pictographs and what they picture
Some are easier to see in traditional script: compare 马 (mǎ) with 馬 (mǎ) and 鱼 (yú) with 魚 (yú).
Chinese pictographs with pinyin, meaning and what each one pictures| Character | Traditional | Pinyin | Meaning | Strokes | What it pictures |
|---|
| 人 | 人 | rén | person | 2 | A person seen from the side, walking. |
| 大 | 大 | dà | big | 3 | A person standing with arms and legs stretched wide. |
| 女 | 女 | nǚ | woman | 3 | A woman kneeling with her arms folded in front of her. |
| 子 | 子 | zǐ | child | 3 | A baby wrapped up, with its head and arms showing. |
| 口 | 口 | kǒu | mouth | 3 | An open mouth. |
| 目 | 目 | mù | eye | 5 | An eye, turned upright. |
| 耳 | 耳 | ěr | ear | 6 | The outline of an ear. |
| 手 | 手 | shǒu | hand | 4 | A hand with the fingers spread. |
| 足 | 足 | zú | foot | 7 | A leg with the foot at the bottom. |
| 心 | 心 | xīn | heart | 4 | The heart, drawn as the organ in the chest. |
| 日 | 日 | rì | sun | 4 | The sun with a dot in the middle, now a line. |
| 月 | 月 | yuè | moon | 4 | A crescent moon. |
| 山 | 山 | shān | mountain | 3 | Three mountain peaks. |
| 水 | 水 | shuǐ | water | 4 | A stream with drops splashing on each side. |
| 火 | 火 | huǒ | fire | 4 | Flames rising up. |
| 木 | 木 | mù | tree | 4 | A tree with branches above and roots below. |
| 田 | 田 | tián | field | 5 | A field divided into plots by paths. |
| 石 | 石 | shí | stone | 5 | A rock at the foot of a cliff. |
| 雨 | 雨 | yǔ | rain | 8 | Raindrops falling from the sky. |
| 云 | 雲 | yún | cloud | 4 | A curling cloud; the traditional form 雲 adds rain on top. |
| 门 | 門 | mén | door | 3 | A gate with two doors; the traditional form 門 still shows both. |
| 刀 | 刀 | dāo | knife | 2 | A knife with a curved blade. |
| 弓 | 弓 | gōng | bow | 3 | A bow for shooting arrows. |
| 舟 | 舟 | zhōu | boat | 6 | A small boat. |
| 车 | 車 | chē | cart | 4 | A cart seen from above, with its wheels and axle; clearer in the traditional 車. |
| 马 | 馬 | mǎ | horse | 3 | A horse with its mane, legs and tail; clearer in the traditional 馬. |
| 牛 | 牛 | niú | ox | 4 | An ox's head with two horns. |
| 羊 | 羊 | yáng | sheep | 6 | A sheep's head with curved horns. |
| 鸟 | 鳥 | niǎo | bird | 5 | A bird with its head, wing and tail; clearer in the traditional 鳥. |
| 鱼 | 魚 | yú | fish | 8 | A fish with its head, scales and tail; clearer in the traditional 魚. |
| 虫 | 蟲 | chóng | insect; worm | 6 | A snake or worm with a big head. |
| 竹 | 竹 | zhú | bamboo | 6 | Two bamboo stems with drooping leaves. |
| 禾 | 禾 | hé | grain plant | 5 | A rice or millet plant with its heavy head bending over. |
| 米 | 米 | mǐ | rice | 6 | Grains of rice, with a line through the middle. |
| 贝 | 貝 | bèi | shell | 4 | A cowrie shell, once used as money; the traditional form is 貝. |
| 衣 | 衣 | yī | clothes | 6 | A top with a collar and two sleeves. |
More Chinese worksheets for kids
- Chinese worksheets for kids: Free printable Chinese worksheets for children from kindergarten to Primary 3: big tracing boxes, pinyin and English on every sheet.
- Kindergarten Chinese: The first 40 characters for K1 and K2: numbers, pictographs and first words in extra-large boxes. 一 二 三 四
- Primary 1 Chinese: SayMei's 100 Grade 1 characters in ten units, from 你好 (nǐ hǎo) and family words to colors and useful verbs. 你 好 我 是
- Primary 2 Chinese: SayMei's 100 Grade 2 characters: body, animals, time, directions, weather, home, school and joining words. 头 足 身 体
- Primary 3 Chinese: SayMei's 100 Grade 3 characters, most taught in families that share a part: 氵 (shuǐ), 口 (kǒu), 木 (mù), 亻 (rén), 扌 (shǒu), 讠 (yán) and 日 (rì). 河 海 江 湖
Frequently asked questions
What is a pictograph in Chinese?
A pictograph, 象形字 (xiàng xíng zì), is a character that began as a drawing of the thing it means: 山 (shān) shows three mountain peaks and 木 (mù) a tree with branches and roots. Over the centuries the drawings became the simpler shapes written today.
Which Chinese characters look like what they mean?
Good first examples are 人 (rén, person), 口 (kǒu, mouth), 日 (rì, sun), 月 (yuè, moon), 山 (shān, mountain), 水 (shuǐ, water), 火 (huǒ, fire) and 木 (mù, tree). This page lists 36, each with a note on what it pictures.
How many Chinese characters are pictographs?
Only a small share. In the ancient dictionary 说文解字 (shuō wén jiě zì), pictographs are about four percent of its roughly 9,000 characters; most characters combine a meaning part with a sound part. The pictographs still matter, because they reappear inside thousands of others.
Why are some pictographs easier to see in traditional characters?
Simplification smoothed some pictures away. The traditional 馬 (mǎ, horse) still shows a mane, legs and tail, and 魚 (yú, fish) shows scales and a tail, while the simplified 马 (mǎ) and 鱼 (yú) are quicker to write. The table on this page shows both forms.
Is this worksheet free to print?
Yes. The Chinese pictographs worksheet is free to print or save as a PDF, with no account or email needed, and you can print as many copies as you like for a class. Choose A4 or US Letter before you press Print or Save PDF.