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信

Mandarin · pinyin xìn

Meanings

  1. letter
  2. mail
  3. Classifier: 封 fēng
  4. to trust
  5. to believe
  6. to profess faith in
  7. truthful
  8. confidence
  9. trust
  10. at will
  11. at random
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Characters in this entry

信
xìn · trust, believe; letter
Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Entries containing 信 ↗Words written with 信 ↗

Mandarin tones

4 · xin4

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Connected dictionary

1character link10same-tone records2source references
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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.

信 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 17 senses · 2 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

san1 · seon3

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

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

character · Etymology 1

  1. true; accurate; verifiable
  2. truly; indeed
  3. trustworthy
  4. to believe; to trust in something
  5. to believe in (a faith); to be religious in
  6. trust; confidence; faith
  7. at will
  8. letter (written communication) (Classifier: 封 m c mn)
  9. message; information; news
  10. evidence
  11. courier; messenger
  12. (abbreviation, alt-of) short for 信州 (Xìnzhōu)
  13. (mineralogy) short for 信石 (xìnshí, “arsenolite”)
  14. a surname, Xin

character · Etymology 2

  1. (literary) obsolete form of 申 (shēn): to express; to state
  2. (literary) obsolete form of 伸 (shēn): to extend
  3. (alt-of, alternative) alternative form of 身, used in 信圭 (shēnguī)

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack