五 is the character for “five”. It is made out of 4 strokes.
| Chinese Character | Simplified Version | Bopomofo | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 五 | 五 | ㄨˇ | wǔ |
Definition
5; five
Historical Origins
The Chinese character 五 originally appeared as 𠄡, a symbol combining 㐅 with horizontal bars above and below. One theory suggests its design reflects ancient counting practices: when counting to ten on a single hand, people would first count to five and then reverse direction to reach ten. This visual and conceptual representation likely contributed to the character’s association with the number five.
Vocabulary with the Character 五
| Chinese | Bopomofo | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| 五月 | ㄨˇ ㄩㄝˋ | wǔ yuè | May |
| 五官 | ㄨˇ ㄍㄨㄢ | wǔ guān | Five senses |
| 五湖四海 | ㄨˇ ㄏㄨˊ ㄙˋ ㄏㄞˇ | wǔ hú sì hǎi | All over the world |
| 五行 | ㄨˇ ㄏㄤˊ | wǔ háng | The Five Elements |
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