少
·
few; less; to lack; to be missing; to stop (doing sth); seldom
4 strokes
Dict coverage rank #675 U+5C11
How 少 is formed
Pictograph (象形字)
Grains of sand; 小 provides the pronunciation and meaning
How to remember it
few · Heisig RSH #110
a drop of + 小 small
Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.
Characters built with 少 as their sound component
These characters all use 少 (shǎo) as their phonetic component — compare how they read:
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 少 sound component | shǎo | few, little; less; inadequate |
| 沙 | shā | sand, gravel, pebbles; granulated |
| 省 | shěng | province; frugal; to save, to leave out |
| 妙 | miào | mysterious, subtle; clever, exquisite, wonderful |
| 炒 | chǎo | to boil, to fry, to roast, to sauté; to trade stock |
| 抄 | chāo | copy, plagiarism; to confiscate, to seize |
| 纱 | shā | gauze, muslin, yarn |
| 秒 | miǎo | a second; a corn kernel; measure word for time |
| 钞 | chāo | bank note, paper money; to counterfeit |
| 吵 | chǎo | to argue, to dispute; to annoy, to disturb |
| 耖 | chào | harrow-like implement for pulverizing clods of soil; to level ground with such an implemen… |
Words containing 少
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 多一事不如少一事 | duō yī shì bù rú shǎo yī shì | it is better to avoid unnecessary trouble (idiom); the less complications the better |
| 花有重开日，人无再少年 | huā yǒu chóng kāi rì , rén wú zài shào nián | a flower may blossom again, but a person cannot get young again (proverb) |
| 少不经事 | shào bù jīng shì | see 少不更事[shao4 bu4 geng1 shi4] |
| 少年之家 | shào nián zhī jiā | children's center; children's club |
| 少子化 | shǎo zǐ huà | declining birthrate (orthographic borrowing from Japanese 少子化 "shoushika") |
| 少白头 | shào bái tóu | to be prematurely gray; young person with graying hair |
| 少年老成 | shào nián lǎo chéng | accomplished though young; lacking youthful vigor |
| 少数民族 | shǎo shù mín zú | ethnic minority |
| 不可少 | bù kě shǎo | indispensable; essential |
| 少不得 | shǎo bu dé | cannot be avoided; cannot do without |
| 少东家 | shào dōng jiā | boss's son |
| 年少无知 | nián shào wú zhī | (idiom) young and inexperienced; unsophisticated |
| 少年人 | shào nián rén | (Tw) young people; youngster |
| 有不少名堂 | yǒu bù shǎo míng tang | there is a lot to it; not a straightforward matter |
| 少阳病 | shào yáng bìng | name of disease in TCM |
| 老来少 | lǎo lái shào | old but young at heart |
| 少阳经 | shào yáng jīng | lesser yang gallbladder meridian of the leg (one of the 12 principal meridians of TCM) |
| 不少 | bù shǎo | many; quite a few; a good number of |
| 少数民族乡 | shǎo shù mín zú xiāng | ethnic township (formal village level subdivision of PRC county) |
| 少部分 | shǎo bù fen | a small proportion of; Taiwan pr. [shao3bu4fen4] |