兒

This entry is flagged for review.

Pronunciation

Peng'im: ri5
POJ: jî
Variety: chaozhou

Pronunciation note: Realised [dz] ~ [z] ~ [l] depending on speaker and register; many younger speakers merge it with /l/. The cited sources corroborate [dz], relaxing to [z] for younger/overseas speakers; neither attests the further merger to /l/.

Meanings and usage

noun: child, son (bound form)
兒

兒 functions both as a noun meaning child/son and as a grammatical diminutive/nominalizing suffix in Mandarin (erhua); it is rarely used standalone outside compounds, so the noun sense was picked as primary but the suffix functions are equally well attested on the page.

Open in the interactive dictionary to hear available audio