chū
prefix (first grade of junior high school )
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今天是七月初一。
jīntiān shì qīyuè chūyī.
Today is the first day of July.
他今年刚上初中。
tā jīnnián gāng shàng chūzhōng.
He just started middle school this year.
我初次来中国的时候，对这里的一切都感到很陌生。
wǒ chū cì lái zhōng guó de shí hòu ， duì zhè lǐ de yī qiē dū gǎn dào hěn mò shēng .
When I first came to China, everything here felt very strange to me.
始 (shǐ)
begin
头 (tóu)
first
末 (mò)
end
终 (zhōng)
finish
The Chinese character 初 (chū) is composed of two parts: 日 (rì) and 歹 (dǎi). 日 means "sun" and 歹 means "bad". The combination of these two characters suggests the idea of "the first day of the month", which is when the sun first appears after the new moon. This character is often used in the context of time, such as the beginning of a month, year, or era. It can also be used to refer to the first time something happens, such as the first day of school or the first time someone meets someone else. In addition, 初 can be used to refer to the beginning of a person's life, such as their birth or childhood.
