本
Spell out: + =
(bound form) root; stem; (bound form) origin; source; (bound form) one's own; this; (bound form) this; the current (year etc); (bound form) original; (bound form) inherent; originally; initially; capital; principal; classifier for books, periodicals, files etc
5 strokes
Dict coverage rank #126 U+672C
How 本 is formed
Ideographic compound (会意字)
A tree 木 with its roots highlighted
How to remember it
notebook · Heisig RSH #213
木 tree
Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.
Characters built with 本 as their sound component
These characters all use 本 (běn) as their phonetic component — compare how they read:
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 本 sound component | běn | root, origin, source; basis |
| 苯 | běn | benzene, benzol |
| 笨 | bèn | stupid, foolish, dull, awkward |
| 钵 | bō | earthen basin; alms bowl |
Words containing 本
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 本国人 | běn guó rén | natives of one's own country |
| 山本头 | Shān běn tóu | (Tw) "Yamamoto haircut", similar to a butch cut, but with even length (no tapering on the … |
| 本地人 | běn dì rén | native person (of a country) |
| 本地化 | běn dì huà | localization; adaptation (to foreign environment) |
| 小日本儿 | xiǎo Rì běn r | erhua variant of 小日本[xiao3 Ri4 ben3] |
| 本子 | běn zi | book; notebook; Japanese-style self-published comic (esp. an erotic one), aka "dōjinshi"; … |
| 本人 | běn rén | I; me; myself; oneself; yourself; himself; herself; the person concerned |
| 山本 | Shān běn | Yamamoto (Japanese surname) |
| 本国 | běn guó | one's own country |
| 本市 | běn shì | this city; our city |
| 日本人 | Rì běn rén | Japanese person |
| 机会成本 | jī huì chéng běn | opportunity cost |
| 本地 | běn dì | local; this locality |
| 日本学 | Rì běn xué | Japanology |
| 里斯本 | Lǐ sī běn | Lisbon, capital of Portugal |
| 大学本科 | dà xué běn kē | university undergraduate course |
| 有本事 | yǒu běn shi | to have what it takes; (coll.) (often followed by 就[jiu4]) (used to challenge sb) if you'r… |
| 小本 | xiǎo běn | small capital; on a shoestring |
| 本性 | běn xìng | natural instincts; nature; inherent quality |
| 小日本 | xiǎo Rì běn | (derog.) Japanese person; Jap |