属相 (shǔ xiàng): colloquial term for 生肖[sheng1 xiao4] the animals associated with the years of a 12-year cycle

Meaning & Stroke Order

HSK 7noun

Word info

Pinyin
Meaning: colloquial term for 生肖[sheng1 xiao4] the animals associated with the years of a 12-year cycle
Characters: 2
Part of speech: noun
HSK level: HSK 7

Full definitions

zodiac sign
one of the twelve animals representing the year of a person's birth in the Chinese zodiac

Chinese explanation

中国传统文化中用来表示人出生年份的十二种动物，包括鼠、牛、虎、兔、龙、蛇、马、羊、猴、鸡、狗、猪
每个人根据自己的出生年份对应其中一种动物，这种动物就是他的属相，也叫生肖，常用来推算年龄和性格特点。

Animated stroke order

Watch the stroke order, then try writing it yourself.

Free printable worksheet

Preview the practice sheet, then download the PDF.

Create a custom worksheet

Character breakdown

HSK 6

Example sentences

During the Spring Festival, Grandma always tells us each person's zodiac sign, for example, my older brother is a Tiger and I am a Rabbit.

In China, many people use the zodiac sign to estimate age, so asking about someone's zodiac sign is sometimes more polite than directly asking their age.

She gave me a zodiac pendant, saying my zodiac sign is Horse and wearing it will bring good luck.

At the company annual party, colleagues talked about their zodiac signs and found that people born in the Year of the Dragon and the Monkey were the most numerous.

According to the order of the twelve zodiac signs, this year is the Year of the Rabbit, and next year will be the Year of the Dragon.

Keep exploring nearby meanings, levels, and sounds.

Unlock related vocabulary