小寒

Mandarin · pinyin Xiǎo hán

Meanings

  1. Lesser Cold, 23rd of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣 6th-19th January
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Characters in this entry

小
xiǎo · small, tiny, insignificant
寒
hán · cold, wintry, chilly
Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

3–2 · Xiao3 han2

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 2 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

siu2 hon4

Cantonese word readings for 小寒. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

name

  1. Lesser Cold (23rd of the 24th solar terms)
  2. the day marking the beginning of the 23rd solar term (January 5, 6, or 7)

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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