Usage of the character 字

Chinese character dictionary (containing entries for single characters, contrasted with a 詞典／词典 (cídiǎn), which has entries for words of one or more characters)
(coll.) dictionary
CL:本 (běn)

zìyì

字义

[字義]

meaning of a character

zìmù

字幕

[字幕]

caption
subtitle

zìduàn

字段

[字段]

(numeric, data) field

zìjù

字据

[字據]

written pledge
contract
IOU

lüèzì

略字

[略字]

abbreviated character
simplified character

guózì

国字

[國字]

Chinese character (Hanzi)
the native script used to write a nation's language

cìzì

刺字

[刺字]

to tattoo

chìzì

赤字

[赤字]

(financial) deficit
red letter

shúzì

熟字

[熟字]

familiar words
known Chinese character

yòngzì

用字

[用字]

to use letters
to use words
diction

gǔzì

古字

[古字]

ancient character
archaic form of a Chinese character

zìjù

字句

[字句]

words
expressions
writing

qiānzì

铅字

[鉛字]

(printing) type; movable letters

liànzì

炼字

[煉字]

to craft one's words

zìmǎ

字码

[字碼]

character code

jièzì

借字

[借字]

see 通假字 (tōngjiǎzì)

zìshǒu

字首

[字首]

prefix

zìhuà

字画

[字畫]

the strokes of a character
calligraphy and painting

hànzì

汉字

[漢字]

Chinese character
CL:個／个 (gè)
Japanese: kanji
Korean: hanja
Vietnamese: hán tự

xiězì

写字

[寫字]

to write (by hand)
to practice calligraphy

zìzhòng

字重

[字重]

font weight

kǎizì

楷字

[楷字]

regular script (Chinese calligraphic style)

dàizì

代字

[代字]

abbreviated name of an entity (e.g. 皖政, a short name for 安徽省人民政府)
code name
(old) pronoun

dǎzì

打字

[打字]

to type

zìzǔ

字组

[字組]

block (of data)
code word

zhèngzì

正字

[正字]

to correct an erroneously written character
regular script (calligraphy)
standard form (of a character or spelling)

dàizì

待字

[待字]

(literary) (of a young lady) to be awaiting betrothal

zìtú

字图

[字圖]

glyph

zìsù

字素

[字素]

grapheme

shízì

十字

[十字]

cross road
cross-shaped
crucifix
the character ten

zìyǎn

字眼

[字眼]

wording

zìjiǎo

字脚

[字腳]

serif
hook at the end of brushstroke

jīnzì

金字

[金字]

gold lettering
gold characters

zìshù

字数

[字數]

number of written characters; number of words; word count

běnzì

本字

[本字]

original form of a Chinese character

zìmiàn

字面

[字面]

literal
typeface

Tzìzhàng

T字帐

[T字帳]

T-account (accounting)

Tzìkù

T字裤

[T字褲]

thong (underwear)

jiǎnzìfǎ

检字法

[檢字法]

indexing system for Chinese characters in a dictionary

fēishùzì

非数字

[非數字]

non-numeric

zuǒzìtóu

左字头

[左字頭]

"top of 左 character" component in Chinese characters

tóuhàozì

头号字

[頭號字]

largest typeface
biggest letters

jǐngzìqí

井字棋

[井字棋]

tic-tac-toe

dǎzìjī

打字机

[打字機]

typewriter

yīzìjīn

一字巾

[一字巾]

headband; strip of cloth worn around the head

zǒubèizì

走背字

[走背字]

to have bad luck

zhàozìjié

兆字节

[兆字節]

megabyte (2^20 or approximately a million bytes)

shízìxiù

十字绣

[十字繡]

cross-stitch

hēitǐzì

黑体字

[黑體字]

bold characters; bold font

bāzìhú

八字胡

[八字鬍]

mustache shaped like character 八

shízìjūn

十字军

[十字軍]

crusaders
army of crusaders
the Crusades

Qiānzìwén

千字文

[千字文]

Thousand Character Classic, 6th century poem used as a traditional reading primer

tízìqì

提字器

[提字器]

teleprompter

qiānzìfèi

签字费

[簽字費]

signing bonus
sign-on bonus

qiānzìjié

千字节

[千字節]

kilobyte

jiǎnzìbiǎo

检字表

[檢字表]

word index (of a dictionary)

xíngshēngzì

形声字

[形聲字]

phono-semantic compound character

shízìjià

十字架

[十字架]

cross
crucifix
yoke one has to endure

zìyuánjí

字元集

[字元集]

character set

tuōzìjué

拖字诀

[拖字訣]

delaying tactics

shùmùzì

数目字

[數目字]

numeral
digit
number
figure

jízìjié

吉字节

[吉字節]

gigabyte (2^30 or approximately a billion bytes)

wénzìxué

文字学

[文字學]

philology

sǐwénzì

死文字

[死文字]

dead language
indecipherable script

dútǐzì

独体字

[獨體字]

single-component character

hétǐzì

合体字

[合體字]

a Chinese character formed by combining existing elements - i.e. a combined ideogram 會意／会意 or radical plus phonetic 形聲／形声

huìwénzì

绘文字

[繪文字]

emoji

zìzhǐlǒu

字纸篓

[字紙簍]

wastepaper basket

tóngyìzì

同义字

[同義字]

synonym

yīzhìzì

一致字

[一致字]

(orthography) consistent words (e.g. "dean", "bean", and "lean", where "-ean" is pronounced the same in each case)
consistent characters (e.g. 搖／摇 (yáo), 遙／遥 (yáo) and 謠／谣 (yáo), which share a phonetic component that reliably indicates that the pronunciation of the character is yáo)

sútǐzì

俗体字

[俗體字]

nonstandard form of a Chinese character

zhǎozìtóu

爪字头

[爪字頭]

Chinese character component 爫, used in 乳 (rǔ), 愛／爱 (ài) etc

rénzìtuō

人字拖

[人字拖]

flip-flops (abbr. for 人字拖鞋 (rénzìtuōxié))

duōyīnzì

多音字

[多音字]

character with two or more readings

huàshízì

画十字

[畫十字]

to make the sign of the cross
to make a cross (on paper)

tóuwénzì

头文字

[頭文字]

initial
first letter of word (in Latin script)

lìwàizì

例外字

[例外字]

exception(s)

gōngzìliáng

工字梁

[工字梁]

I-beam

yánzìpáng

言字旁

[言字旁]

name of "speech" or "words" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 149)
see also 訁／讠 (yán)

shùzìwǎng

数字网

[數字網]

digital network

lǎozìhào

老字号

[老字號]

shop, firm, or brand of merchandise with a long-established reputation

shízìsī

十字丝

[十字絲]

crosshairs

guózìliǎn

国字脸

[國字臉]

square face

yīzìr

一字儿

[一字兒]

in a row; in a line

xīnzìtǐ

新字体

[新字體]

shinjitai, simplified Japanese character used since 1946

wúzìbēi

无字碑

[無字碑]

stone tablet without inscription
blank stele

rénzìxíng

人字形

[人字形]

V-shape; chevron; herringbone

bùshízì

不识字

[不識字]

illiterate

xiězìtái

写字台

[寫字檯]

writing desk

zìjiéshù

字节数

[字節數]

byte count

yìtǐzì

异体字

[異體字]

variant Chinese character

jiǎntǐzì

简体字

[簡體字]

simplified Chinese character, as opposed to traditional Chinese character 繁體字／繁体字 (fántǐzì)

shízìxíng

十字形

[十字形]

cruciform
cross shape

fāngkuàizì

方块字

[方塊字]

Chinese characters

tóngyīnzì

同音字

[同音字]

Chinese character that is pronounced the same (as another character)

suōlüèzì

缩略字

[縮略字]

abbreviated character

zìfújí

字符集

[字符集]

character set (e.g. ASCII 美國資訊交換標準碼／美国资讯交换标准码 or Unicode 統一碼／统一码)

guānjiànzì

关键字

[關鍵字]

keyword

zhīzìxíng

之字形

[之字形]

Z-shaped; zigzag

diǎnzìjī

点字机

[點字機]

braille typewriter

dīngzìchǐ

丁字尺

[丁字尺]

T-square
set square (carpenter's tool)

chǎngzìpáng

厂字旁

[厂字旁]

name of "cliff" 厂 radical in simplified Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 27)

shùzìhuà

数字化

[數字化]

to digitize

pínghuázì

平滑字

[平滑字]

sans serif (typography)

liánzìfú

连字符

[連字符]

hyphen

fántǐzì

繁体字

[繁體字]

traditional Chinese character

liánzìhào

连字号

[連字號]

hyphen (punct.)

zìmǔbiǎo

字母表

[字母表]

alphabet

qūzìkuàng

区字框

[區字框]

radical 匚 (fāng) (Kangxi radical 22)

zhuǎnzhùzì

转注字

[轉注字]

transfer character (one of the Six Methods 六書／六书 of forming Chinese characters)
character with meanings influenced by other words
sometimes called mutually explanatory character

kōuzìyǎn

抠字眼

[摳字眼]

to be fastidious about phrasing, diction, or choice of words

bāzìxíng

八字形

[八字形]

shape resembling the character 八 or 8
V-shape
splayed
figure of eight

tóngzìkuàng

同字框

[同字框]

name of the radical 冂 (jiōng) in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 13)

jièzìr

借字儿

[借字兒]

IOU
receipt for a loan

shízìgǎo

十字镐

[十字鎬]

pickaxe

qiānzìbǐ

签字笔

[簽字筆]

felt-tip pen
roller ball pen
gel ink pen

pībāzì

批八字

[批八字]

to have one's fortune read
system of fortune telling based on a person's date and time of birth, according to 干支 (sexagenary cycle)

bāzìjiǎo

八字脚

[八字腳]

splayfoot

gōngzìgāng

工字钢

[工字鋼]

I-beam

zìgēnbiǎo

字根表

[字根表]

table of components used in wubi input method 五筆輸入法／五笔输入法 (wǔbǐshūrùfǎ)

huìyìzì

会意字

[會意字]

combined ideogram (one of the Six Methods 六書／六书 of forming Chinese characters)
Chinese character that combines the meanings of existing elements
also known as joint ideogram or associative compound

dàzìbào

大字报

[大字報]

big-character poster

dīngzìgǎo

丁字镐

[丁字鎬]

hammer pick

huózìdiǎn

活字典

[活字典]

walking dictionary
well-informed person

chúnwénzì

纯文字

[純文字]

text only (webpage)

dīngzìliáng

丁字梁

[丁字梁]

T-girder

Táiluózì

台罗字

[臺羅字]

Tai-lo, romanization system for Taiwanese Hokkien (abbr. for 臺灣閩南語羅馬字拼音方案／台湾闽南语罗马字拼音方案 ( Táiwán Minnǎnyu Luomázi Pinyīn Fāngān))

Rénzìdòng

人字洞

[人字洞]

Renzidong palaeolithic archaeological site at Fanchang 繁昌 ( Fánchāng), Anhui

zhīzìlù

之字路

[之字路]

zigzag road
switchback

cūtǐzì

粗体字

[粗體字]

bold letter

duōzìjié

多字节

[多字節]

multibyte

pòyīnzì

破音字

[破音字]

character with two or more readings
character where different readings convey different meanings (Tw)

hǔzìtóu

虎字头

[虎字頭]

name of "tiger" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 141)
see also 虍 (hū)

yánwénzì

颜文字

[顏文字]

Japanese-style emoticon, e.g. (⇀‸↼‶)

fǎnyìzì

反义字

[反義字]

character with opposite meaning
antonym
opposite characters

shǒuzìmǔ

首字母

[首字母]

initial letters

tàncèzì

探测字

[探測字]

(cognitive psychology) probe letter

dīngzìkù

丁字裤

[丁字褲]

thong (underwear)

xiězìlóu

写字楼

[寫字樓]

office building

dīngzìbù

丁字步

[丁字步]

T-step (basic dance position, with the feet forming a T shape)

qiānzìzhě

签字者

[簽字者]

signatory

shízìlü

识字率

[識字率]

literacy rate

zìtiěr

字帖儿

[字帖兒]

piece of paper with short note
short letter

xiàngxíngzì

象形字

[象形字]

pictogram (one of the Six Methods 六書／六书 of forming Chinese characters)
Chinese character derived from a picture
sometimes called hieroglyph

Sānzì Jīng

三字经

[三字經]

Three Character Classic, 13th century reading primer consisting of Confucian tenets in lines of 3 characters

xiězìbǎn

写字板

[寫字板]

writing tablet
clipboard

cházìfǎ

查字法

[查字法]

look-up method for Chinese characters

tōngjiǎzì

通假字

[通假字]

phonetic loan character
using one character interchangeably for phonetically related characters

wénzìdàng

文字档

[文字檔]

text file

shēnglěngzì

生冷字

[生冷字]

obscure or archaic character

bāzìméi

八字眉

[八字眉]

sloping eyebrows, formed like character for "eight"

shēngpángzì

声旁字

[聲旁字]

character serving as sound value of another character
phonetic

bāzìbù

八字步

[八字步]

step with feet splayed outwards

jīnzìtǎ

金字塔

[金字塔]

pyramid (building or structure)

zhǐshìzì

指事字

[指事字]

ideogram (one of the Six Methods 六書／六书 of forming Chinese characters)
Chinese character indicating an idea, such as up and down
also known as self-explanatory character

zhèngzìfǎ

正字法

[正字法]

orthography

zhèngtǐzì

正体字

[正體字]

standard form of a Chinese character
(Tw) traditional (i.e. unsimplified) characters

pòtǐzi

破体字

[破體字]

nonstandard or corrupted form of a Chinese character

jiǎnhuàzì

简化字

[簡化字]

simplified Chinese character

jiùzìtǐ

旧字体

[舊字體]

kyujitai, traditional Japanese character used before 1946

qīngzìtóu

青字头

[青字頭]

"top of 青 character" component in Chinese characters (龶)

zìfúchuàn

字符串

[字符串]

string (computing)

zìmǔcí

字母词

[字母詞]

word that contains one or more letters of an alphabet (e.g. HSK, PK, WTO, PO文, PM2.5, γ射線／γ射线 (γshèxiàn))

sānzìjīng

三字经

[三字經]

(slang) swearword
four-letter word

dīngzìjiē

丁字街

[丁字街]

T-junction

dōngzìtóu

冬字头

[冬字頭]

name of "walk slowly" component 夂 (zhǐ) in Chinese characters

huàshízì

划十字

[劃十字]

variant of 畫十字／画十字 (huàshízì)

chángyòngzì

常用字

[常用字]

everyday words

luómǎzì

罗马字

[羅馬字]

the Latin alphabet

dǎzìyuán

打字员

[打字員]

typist

kèlòuzì

克漏字

[克漏字]

cloze (loanword) (Tw)

Zhèngzìtōng

正字通

[正字通]

Zhengzitong, Chinese character dictionary with 33,549 entries, edited by Ming scholar Zhang Zilie 張自烈／张自烈 ( Zhāng Zìliè) in 17th century

Hóngshízì

红十字

[紅十字]

Red Cross

dàizìhào

代字号

[代字號]

swung dash
tilde (~)

zhuànzìsuǒ

转字锁

[轉字鎖]

combination lock

cuòbiézì

错别字

[錯別字]

incorrectly written or mispronounced characters

tǒng Hànzì

统汉字

[統漢字]

Unihan
China Japan Korea (CJK) unified ideographs
abbr. for 中日韓統一表意文字／中日韩统一表意文字 ( Zhōng Rì Hántǒngyībiǎoyìwénzì)

jiǎjièzì

假借字

[假借字]

loan character (one of the Six Methods 六書／六书 of forming Chinese characters)
character acquiring meanings by phonetic association
also called phonetic loan

shùzìzhōng

数字钟

[數字鐘]

digital clock

shěngzìhào

省字号

[省字號]

an apostrophe (punct.)

xiétǐzì

斜体字

[斜體字]

italics

wénzìyù

文字狱

[文字獄]

literary inquisition
official persecution of intellectuals for their writing

Mǐzìqí

米字旗

[米字旗]

Union Jack (flag of the United Kingdom)

zìzhǐlǒuzi

字纸篓子

[字紙簍子]

see 字紙簍／字纸篓 (zìzhǐlǒu)

zǒubèizìr

走背字儿

[走背字兒]

erhua variant of 走背字 (zǒubèizì)

Lādīngzìmǔ

拉丁字母

[拉丁字母]

Latin alphabet

gǔwénzìxué

古文字学

[古文字學]

paleography

jiǎgǔwénzì

甲骨文字

[甲骨文字]

oracle script
oracle bone character (an early form of Chinese script)

zìmǔshùnxù

字母顺序

[字母順序]

alphabetical order

zhúzìzhújù

逐字逐句

[逐字逐句]

literal; word for word
word by word and phrase by phrase

wǔbǐzìxíng

五笔字型

[五筆字型]

five stroke input method for Chinese characters by numbered strokes, invented by Wang Yongmin 王永民 in 1983

jìngxīzìzhǐ

敬惜字纸

[敬惜字紙]

to treasure written material as a cultural resource (idiom)

shùzìyóumín

数字游民

[數字遊民]

digital nomad

báizhǐhēizì

白纸黑字

[白紙黑字]

(written) in black and white

Luómǎzìmǔ

罗马字母

[羅馬字母]

Roman letters
Roman alphabet

chìzìlěilěi

赤字累累

[赤字累累]

debt-ridden
heavily laden with debt

wàibāzìtuǐ

外八字腿

[外八字腿]

bow legs
bandy legs

qiǎncéngwénzì

浅层文字

[淺層文字]

shallow orthography (governed by simple rules)

jīnzìtǎshì

金字塔式

[金字塔式]

downward-facing dog (yoga pose)

rénzìtuōxié

人字拖鞋

[人字拖鞋]

flip-flops
flip-flop sandals
thongs
see also 人字拖 (rénzìtuō)

Zhōnghuá Zìhǎi

中华字海

[中華字海]

Zhonghua Zihai, the most comprehensive Chinese character dictionary with 85,568 entries, compiled in 1994

yīzìzòngduì

一字纵队

[一字縱隊]

single file

Kāngxī Zìdiǎn

康熙字典

[康熙字典]

the Kangxi Dictionary, named after the Kangxi Emperor, who in 1710 ordered its compilation, containing 47,035 single-character entries

Shuōwén Jiězì

说文解字

[說文解字]

Shuowen Jiezi, the original Han dynasty Chinese character dictionary with 10,516 entries, authored by Xu Shen 許慎／许慎 ( Xǔ Shèn) in 2nd century

wǔbǐzìxíng

五笔字形

[五筆字形]

Chinese character input method for entering characters by numbered strokes (variant of 五筆字型／五笔字型 (wǔbǐzìxíng))

Nánshízìzuò

南十字座

[南十字座]

(astronomy) the Southern Cross

shùzìfēnpín

数字分频

[數字分頻]

digital frequency sharing

zàijiǔwènzì

载酒问字

[載酒問字]

a scholarly and inquisitive individual (idiom)

Hánwénzìmǔ

韩文字母

[韓文字母]

hangul, Korean phonetic alphabet; Korean letters

shēngchénbāzì

生辰八字

[生辰八字]

one's birth data for astrological purposes, combined from year, month, day, hour, heavenly trunk and earthly branch

zhuǎnyìzìfú

转义字符

[轉義字符]

(computing) escape character

pīnyīnzìmǔ

拼音字母

[拼音字母]

phonetic letters

xiēxíngwénzì

楔形文字

[楔形文字]

cuneiform (Babylonian script)

zhùyīnzìmǔ

注音字母

[注音字母]

see 注音符號／注音符号 (zhùyīnfúhào)

diǎnzhènzìtǐ

点阵字体

[點陣字體]

bitmap font (computer)

bāzìmìnglǐ

八字命理

[八字命理]

divination based on the eight characters of one's birth date

zìzhēnjùzhuó

字斟句酌

[字斟句酌]

weighing every word

shízìhuākē

十字花科

[十字花科]

Cruciferae or Brassicaceae (taxonomic family including Brassica etc whose flowers have a cross of 4 petals)

lú'ēnzìmǔ

卢恩字母

[盧恩字母]

rune

pīnyīnwénzì

拼音文字

[拼音文字]

phonetic alphabet
alphabetic writing system

shízìzhuànmén

十字转门

[十字轉門]

turnstile

Cháoxiǎnzìmǔ

朝鲜字母

[朝鮮字母]

hangul, Korean phonetic alphabet
Korean letters

dàxiězìmǔ

大写字母

[大寫字母]

capital letters
uppercase letters

biǎoyìwénzì

表意文字

[表意文字]

ideograph
ideographical writing system

tíbǐwàngzì

提笔忘字

[提筆忘字]

to have difficulty remembering how to write Chinese characters

wàibāzìjiǎo

外八字脚

[外八字腳]

splayed feet

yīzìbùtí

一字不提

[一字不提]

to not mention a single word (about sth) (idiom)

bùyīzhìzì

不一致字

[不一致字]

(orthography) inconsistent words (e.g. "through", "bough" and "rough", where "-ough" is not pronounced the same in each case)
inconsistent characters (e.g. 流 (liú), 梳 (shū) and 毓 (yù), which are pronounced differently from each other even though they all have the same notional phonetic component)

zhīzìbùtí

只字不提

[隻字不提]

(idiom) to say not a single word about it

yīzìbùlà

一字不落

[一字不落]

see 一字不漏 (yīzìbùlòu)

yǎowénjiáozì

咬文嚼字

[咬文嚼字]

to bite words and chew characters (idiom); punctilious about minutiae of wording

yīzìbāobiǎn

一字褒贬

[一字褒貶]

lit. dispensing praise or blame with a single word (idiom)
fig. concise and powerful style

shùzìshízhōng

数字时钟

[數字時鐘]

digital clock

zhēnzhuózìjù

斟酌字句

[斟酌字句]

to measure one's words

huózìyìnshuā

活字印刷

[活字印刷]

printing with movable type

shùzìhuòbì

数字货币

[數字貨幣]

digital currency

juéduìshùzì

绝对数字

[絕對數字]

absolute (as opposed to relative) number

bāzìhúxū

八字胡须

[八字鬍鬚]

mustache shaped like character 八

liùzìzhēnyán

六字真言

[六字真言]

the six-syllable Sanskrit mantra of Avalokiteshvara bodhisattva (i.e. om mani padme hum)

shùzìtōngxìn

数字通信

[數字通信]

digital communications

xiāngtóngmíngzì

相同名字

[相同名字]

like-named
having the same name

Zìjié Tiàodòng

字节跳动

[字節跳動]

ByteDance, Beijing-based Internet technology company, founded in 2012

Lādīngwénzì

拉丁文字

[拉丁文字]

the alphabet
latin letters

cǎozìtóur

草字头儿

[草字頭兒]

grass radical 艹

wànyòngzìyuán

万用字元

[萬用字元]

(computing) wildcard character (Tw)

Xīlàzìmǔ

希腊字母

[希臘字母]

Greek alphabet

bāzìfāngzhēn

八字方针

[八字方針]

a policy expressed as an eight-character slogan
(esp.) the eight-character slogan for the economic policy proposed by Li Fuchun 李富春 ( Lǐ Fuchùn) in 1961: 調整、鞏固、充實、提高／调整、巩固、充实、提高 "adjust, consolidate, enrich and improve"

zìlǐhángjiān

字里行间

[字裡行間]

between the words and the lines (idiom); implied meaning
connotations

Luómǎshùzì

罗马数字

[羅馬數字]

Roman numerals

yīzìqiānjīn

一字千金

[一字千金]

one word worth a thousand in gold (idiom)
(in praise of a piece of writing or calligraphy) each character is perfect
each word is highly valued

shíliùzìjué

十六字诀

[十六字訣]

16-character formula, esp. Mao Zedong's mantra on guerrilla warfare: 敵進我退，敵駐我擾，敵疲我打，敵退我追／敌进我退，敌驻我扰，敌疲我打，敌退我追 (díjìnwǒtuì,dízhùwǒrǎo,dípíwǒdǎ,dítuìwǒzhuī) when the enemy advances we retreat; when the enemy makes camp we harass; when the enemy is exhausted we fight; and when the enemy retreats we pursue

zìzhèngqiāngyuán

字正腔圆

[字正腔圓]

to enunciate beautifully (in speaking or singing) (idiom)

hànzìzìtǐ

汉字字体

[漢字字體]

calligraphic style of Chinese characters
typeface
font

xiǎoxiězìmǔ

小写字母

[小寫字母]

lowercase (letters)

yīzìyīlèi

一字一泪

[一字一淚]

each word is a teardrop (idiom)

yīzìbùchā

一字不差

[一字不差]

word for word; verbatim

yīzìbùlòu

一字不漏

[一字不漏]

without missing a word

nèibāzìjiǎo

内八字脚

[內八字腳]

intoeing
pigeon toes
knock-knees

zìzìzhūyù

字字珠玉

[字字珠玉]

every word a gem (idiom); magnificent writing

shízìlùkǒu

十字路口

[十字路口]

crossroads
intersection

yīzìzhīshī

一字之师

[一字之師]

one who can correct a misread or misspelt character and thus be your master

yīzìbùshí

一字不识

[一字不識]

totally illiterate

zhuìzìkèběn

缀字课本

[綴字課本]

spelling book

zònghéngzìmí

纵横字谜

[縱橫字謎]

crossword

wénzìxuéjiā

文字学家

[文字學家]

expert on writing systems

shíwénduànzì

识文断字

[識文斷字]

literate
a cultured person

kōuzìyǎnr

抠字眼儿

[摳字眼兒]

erhua variant of 摳字眼／抠字眼 (kōuzìyǎn)

shízìjiàxíng

十字架刑

[十字架刑]

crucifiction

wénzìgǎigé

文字改革

[文字改革]

reform of the writing system

chúnwénzìyè

纯文字页

[純文字頁]

text-only webpage

tiánzìyóuxì

填字游戏

[填字遊戲]

crossword

zhǐlìngmíngzì

指令名字

[指令名字]

command name

xiàngxíngwénzì

象形文字

[象形文字]

pictogram
hieroglyph

shùzìdiànlù

数字电路

[數字電路]

digital circuit

shùzìxìnhào

数字信号

[數字信號]

digital signal

shùzìdiànshì

数字电视

[數字電視]

digital television

liánzìfúhào

连字符号

[連字符號]

hyphen

wénzìchǔlǐ

文字处理

[文字處理]

word processing

shǒuzìmǔsuōxiě

首字母缩写

[首字母縮寫]

acronym

shízìjūnyuǎnzhēng

十字军远征

[十字軍遠征]

the Crusades

Xīlǐ'ěrzìmǔ

西里尔字母

[西里爾字母]

Cyrillic alphabet
Cyrillic letters

bāzìméiyīpiě

八字没一撇

[八字沒一撇]

lit. there is not even the first stroke of the character 八 (bā) (idiom)
fig. things have not even begun to take shape
no sign of success yet

bǐhuàjiǎnzìbiǎo

笔划检字表

[筆劃檢字表]

lookup table for Chinese character based on radical and stroke count

shízìtóuluódāo

十字头螺刀

[十字頭螺刀]

Phillips screwdriver (i.e. with cross slit)

shùzìmìnglǐxué

数字命理学

[數字命理學]

numerology

Guóyǔ Luómǎzì

国语罗马字

[國語羅馬字]

Gwoyeu Romatzyh, a romanization system for Chinese devised by Y.R. Chao and others in 1925-26

shízìjūndōngzhēng

十字军东征

[十字軍東征]

the Crusades
crusaders' eastern expedition

Hànyǔ Dà Zìdiǎn

汉语大字典

[漢語大字典]

Hanyu Da Zidian, one of the most comprehensive Chinese character dictionaries with 54,678 (and later 60,370) entries, first published between 1986-1990

tōngyòngzìfújí

通用字符集

[通用字符集]

universal character set UCS

biānmǎzìfújí

编码字符集

[編碼字符集]

coded character set

qiángwēishízìtuán

蔷薇十字团

[薔薇十字團]

the Rosicrucian order (masonic order)

duōyīnduōyìzì

多音多义字

[多音多義字]

character having several readings and meanings

hànzìcházìfǎ

汉字查字法

[漢字查字法]

look-up method for Chinese characters

fēi Lādīngzìfú

非拉丁字符

[非拉丁字符]

non-Latin characters

zìgēnhétǐzì

字根合体字

[字根合體字]

stem compound

sānshíliùzìmǔ

三十六字母

[三十六字母]

thirty six initial consonants of Song phonetic theory

Alābóshùzì

阿拉伯数字

[阿拉伯數字]

Arabic numerals 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

Shuōwén Jiězì Zhù

说文解字注

[說文解字註]

Commentary on Shuowen Jiezi (1815) by Duan Yucai 段玉裁 ( Duàn Yùcái)

zìgēntōngyòngmǎ

字根通用码

[字根通用碼]

common coding for components of Chinese character
same as Zheng coding 鄭碼／郑码 ( Zhèngmǎ)

Xiānggǎng Hóng Shízìhuì

香港红十字会

[香港紅十字會]

Hong Kong Red Cross

gāoqīngshùzìdiànshì

高清数字电视

[高清數字電視]

high definition digital television

shǒuzìmǔpīnyīncí

首字母拚音词

[首字母拚音詞]

acronym

Shùzì Bǎnquán Guǎnlǐ

数字版权管理

[數字版權管理]

Digital Rights Management (DRM)

gèrénshùzìzhùlǐ

个人数字助理

[個人數字助理]

personal digital assistant (PDA)

guāngxuézìfúshíbié

光学字符识别

[光學字符識別]

optical character recognition (OCR)

bāzìháiméiyīpiě

八字还没一撇

[八字還沒一撇]

lit. not even the first stroke of the character 八 (bā) has been written (idiom)
fig. things have not even gotten started yet; nothing tangible has come of one's plans yet

shùzìyònghùxiànlù

数字用户线路

[數字用戶線路]

digital subscriber line (DSL)

shùzìdǎolǎnshèshī

数字导览设施

[數字導覽設施]

digital navigation equipment

bāzìháiméiyīpiěr

八字还没一撇儿

[八字還沒一撇兒]

lit. there is not even the first stroke of the character 八 (bā) (idiom)
fig. things have not even begun to take shape
no sign of success yet

zěnyīgèchóuzìliǎodé

怎一个愁字了得

[怎一個愁字了得]

(last line of the poem 聲聲慢／声声慢 ( Shēngshēng Màn) by Song poet Li Qingzhao 李清照 ( Lǐ Qīngzhào))
how can it be expressed in one word, "sorrow"?
how can words express such sadness?

zōnghéyèwùshùzìwǎng

综合业务数字网

[綜合業務數字網]

Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) (computing)

sèzìtóushàngyībǎdāo

色字头上一把刀

[色字頭上一把刀]

lit. there is a knife above the character for lust
fig. lascivious activities can lead to bitter consequences

jiāmìtàojiēzìxiéyìcéng

加密套接字协议层

[加密套接字協議層]

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) (computing)

Dì'èrcì Hànzì Jiǎnhuà Fāng'àn

第二次汉字简化方案

[第二次漢字簡化方案]

Second Chinese Character Simplification Scheme (second round of simplified Chinese characters, proposed in 1977 and retracted in 1986)
abbr. to 二簡／二简 (èrjiǎn)

Zhōng Rì Hántǒngyībiǎoyìwénzì

中日韩统一表意文字

[中日韓統一表意文字]

China Japan Korea (CJK) unified ideographs
Unihan

Tōngyòng Hànzì Biāozhǔn Jiāohuànmǎ

通用汉字标准交换码

[通用漢字標準交換碼]

Standard Interchange Code for Generally Used Chinese Characters, a character encoding standard of Taiwan 1986-1992, aka CNS 11643-1986, where CNS stands for Chinese National Standard
abbr. to 通用碼／通用码 ( Tōngyòngmǎ)