慈 (cí): compassionate, gentle, merciful
慈 (cí) is a Chinese character meaning “compassionate.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 兹 (phonetic) and 心 (semantic). It ranks #1478 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 慈 heart. Its radical form 忄 (heart) appears in many related characters such as 忙 (máng, busy), 快 (kuài, fast, happy), 怎 (zěn, how).
Definitions
- compassionate
- gentle
- merciful
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 慈 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 慈善adjective | cí shàn | benevolent |
| 仁慈adjective | rén cí | benevolent |
| 慈悲adjective | cí bēi | mercy |
| 慈善家noun | cí shàn jiā | philanthropist |
| 慈爱adjective | cí ài | love |
| 慈祥adjective | cí xiáng | kindly |
| 心慈手软phrase | xīn cí shǒu ruǎn | (idiom) softhearted |
| 慈母noun | cí mǔ | warm, caring mother |
| 慈和 | cí hé | kindly |
| 慈姑noun | cí gu | arrowhead (Sagittaria subulata, a water plant) |
| 慈眉善目phrase | cí méi shàn mù | (idiom) kind-looking |
| 恩慈 | ēn cí | bestowed kindness |
| 慈安太后 | cí ān tài hòu | Empress Dowager Ci'an (1837-1881) of Qing |
| 慈福行动 | cí fú xíng dòng | Operation Blessing (charitable relief organization) |
| 慈悲为本 | cí bēi wéi běn | mercy as the guiding principle (idiom) |
慈 appears in 43 compound words: 67 as the first character, 19 as the last, and 14 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 慈 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (7)
mercy as the guiding principle (idiom); the Buddhist teaching that nothing is valid except compassion
mercy as the guiding principle (idiom); the Buddhist teaching that nothing is valid except compassion
Showing 6 of 7 idioms containing 慈.
Example Sentences
他慈甘情愿地帮助每一个需要帮助的人。
tā cí gān qíng yuàn dì bāng zhù měi yī gě xū yāo bāng zhù de rén .
He willingly helps everyone in need.
北投慈后宫妈祖遶境明登场 3千信众涌入、警14...
běi tóu cí hòu gōng mā zǔ 遶 jìng míng dēng chǎng 3 qiān xìn zhòng chōng rù , jǐng 1 4 . . .
Beitou Ciharem Mazu appeared in the Ming Dynasty, 3,000 believers poured in, and the police 14...
中国民乐快闪联合国总部 传递新春慈善之声
zhōng guó mín lè kuài shǎn lián gě guó zǒng bù chuán dì xīn chūn cí shàn zhī shēng
Chinese folk music flash mob United Nations Headquarters conveys the voice of New Year charity
激烈4轮PK决胜 彰化慈航宫年度总斗首出炉
jī liè 4 lún P K jué shèng zhāng huà cí háng gōng nián dù zǒng dǒu shǒu chū lú
Fierce 4 rounds of PK decisive Changhua Cihang Palace's annual general fight was released
彰化竹塘慈航宫总斗首之争 第三轮PK分胜负 桃园人...
zhāng huà zhú táng cí háng gōng zǒng dǒu shǒu zhī zhēng dì sān lún P K fēn shèng fù táo yuán rén . . .
Changhua Zhutang Cihang Palace overall battle battle third round PK points winner Taoyuan people...
我遇到的人都很仁慈。
Wǒ yùdào de rén dōu hěn réncí.
The people whom I meet are kind.
我深深地被她的仁慈所感动。
Wǒ shēnshēn de bèi tā de réncí suǒ gǎndòng.
I was very moved by her kindness.
这位老人家非常仁慈。
Zhèwèi lǎorénjiā fēicháng réncí.
The old man is very kind.
我一得到一大笔钱就捐一部分给慈善机构。
Wǒ yī dédào yī dà bǐ qián jiù juān yībùfen gěi císhànjīgòu.
Whenever I get a large sum of money, I donate some of it to charity.
当地企业正在联手举办一项慈善活动。
Dāngdì qǐyè zhèngzài liánshǒu jǔbàn yī xiàng císhàn huódòng.
Local businesses are teaming up for a charity initiative.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 心 (heart) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 慈 (cí) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 慈 and 滋?
How many strokes does 慈 have?
What is the radical of 慈?
What are the components of 慈?
What are common words containing 慈?
What characters sound the same as 慈 (cí)?
Is 慈 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 慈 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.