WHOLE CHARACTER
少
few; little; less; to lack; to be short of; rare; seldom (少见)
少 read shǎo is few or to lack; read shào it means young, as in 少年.
ZDIC: 形声 — small with the slash as its sound piece.
Character Familiestop / bottom
少
few; little; less; to lack; to be short of; rare; seldom (少见)
少 read shǎo is few or to lack; read shào it means young, as in 少年.
GF0025–2021 character list · 一级, 二级One character pageAll readings and linked senses stay together.
WHOLE GLYPH & STRUCTURE
top / bottom
ZDIC: 形声 — small with the slash as its sound piece.
MEANING: SMALL
小
small; little
A standalone character; kept separate from its named role in 少.
In 少: meaning: small Shown with its documented or clearly limited role.
SOUND (丿, PIĚ)
丿
Notice this part of the shape; it is not taught as a separate word in this lesson.
In 少: sound (丿, piě) Named by ZDIC as the sound piece; a stroke-like graph, not a word.
Tone 3
- few; little; less
- to lack; to be short of
- rare; seldom (少见)
- 多少how much; how many
- 减少to reduce; to decrease
Tone 4
- young (少年, 少女)
- junior rank (少校)
- 少年youth; youngster
- 少女young girl
Checking for a Mandarin voice…