Fluentide
Fluentide for iOS is out — get the app
HSK 1

名字

name

nounneutral4 episodes
名
míng2nd tone
字
zineutral tone

HSK level

1
2
3
4
5
6
Pinyin
míngzi
Part of speech
noun
Level
HSK 1
Strokes
12
Register
neutral
Measure word
个
In episodes
4

Stroke order for 名字

名字 is written with 12 strokes (名: 6, 字: 6). The animation replays automatically.

What does 名字 mean?

名字 (míngzi) is the everyday word for 'name' — a person's name, a pet's name, a place name, the name of anything.

The second syllable 字 is unstressed (neutral tone). The most common HSK 1 question is 你叫什么名字 ('what's your name?'), literally 'you are called what name.'

Two notes for English speakers: first, in Chinese 名字 usually refers to the full given name (or full name including surname), not specifically a first name — to disambiguate, 姓 (xìng) is the family name and 名 alone is the given name. Second, for formal situations like filling out a form or asking an elder, 您贵姓 ('your honored surname') is the polite formula, not 名字. 名字 is neutral/informal and what you'll hear in everyday conversation.

Character by character

名míngname; famous
+
字ziwritten character; word (neutral tone in this compound)
=
名字

Memory hook: 名 (name) + 字 (characters) = the characters that spell your name.

Hear 名字 in real episodes

名字 appears in 4 Fluentide podcast episodes at natural native speed — each with the full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.

A Magnitude 7.4 Quake Flattened Western Colombia. Under the Rubble, a Trapped Man Said: 'I'm With a Baby.'名字 spoken at natural speedbeginnerNims Purja Climbed the World's 14 Highest Peaks. An Avalanche Just Killed Him.名字 spoken at natural speedeasyNims Purja Climbed the World's 14 Highest Peaks. An Avalanche Just Killed Him.名字 spoken at natural speedmediumWall Street's AI Star Bet $45 Billion, Then Watched It Collapse in Weeks名字 spoken at natural speednormal
Browse the full episode library

Example sentences

你叫什么名字？

Nǐ jiào shénme míngzi?

What's your name?

spoken

我的名字是李明。

Wǒ de míngzi shì Lǐ Míng.

My name is Li Ming.

neutral

他的名字很好听。

Tā de míngzi hěn hǎotīng.

His name sounds nice.

spoken

请在这儿写你的名字。

Qǐng zài zhèr xiě nǐ de míngzi.

Please write your name here.

polite

Common phrases with 名字

你的名字nǐ de míngziyour name
叫什么名字jiào shénme míngziwhat's (someone's) name
起名字qǐ míngzito give a name; to name someone
写名字xiě míngzito write (one's) name
中文名字Zhōngwén míngziChinese name

Synonyms

姓名xìngmíng

姓名 is the formal 'full name' (surname + given name), used on forms, documents, and official contexts. 名字 is conversational. On a passport application you'll see 姓名; in a coffee shop you'll be asked 名字.

名míng

Just 名 alone means 'given name' (the part after the surname) and shows up in compounds — 名片 (business card), 有名 (famous). In daily speech, the full word 名字 is what people say.

Don't confuse 名字 with

姓xìng

姓 is specifically the surname / family name. 名字 usually refers to the whole name or the given name. 我姓李 = 'My surname is Li'; 我的名字叫李明 = 'My name is Li Ming.'

字zì

字 alone (4th tone) means 'written character' — '中' is a 字, 'good' has 4 字 in 你好吗 ... oh wait, 3. 名字 as a compound takes neutral tone on the second syllable and means 'name.'

FAQ

Related words from the same episodes

传奇legend, legendary但是but, however倒to fall over, to collapse地震earthquake登山家mountaineer电影film对冲基金hedge fund房子building, house股票stock规模size / scale孩子child简单simple

Acquire it by listening

Meet 名字 again — in real Chinese, at your level.

You just saw 名字 in 4 episodes. Fluentide keeps feeding you news episodes at your level, so this word — and thousands like it — resurface in real sentences until they stick. Full pinyin and translation every time. Free to start.