tóng nián
enfance; petite enfance
Practice writing with stroke order guidance, audio pronunciation, and interactive exercises in our mobile app.
Step-by-step stroke order animations
Native speaker audio pronunciation
Interactive writing recognition
我小时候很喜欢玩游戏。
Wǒ xiǎoshíhòu hěn xǐhuan wán yóuxì.
I liked playing games when I was a child.
我的童年是在农村度过的。
Wǒ de tóngnián shì zài nóngcūn dùguò de.
I spent my childhood in the countryside.
童年是人生中最美好的时光。
Tóngnián shì rénshēng zhōng zuì měihǎo de shíguāng.
Childhood is the best time of one's life.
孩提 (hái tí)
childhood
少时 (shǎo shí)
young age
成年 (chéng nián)
adulthood
老年 (lǎo nián)
old age
The Chinese word 童年 (tónɡnián) for "childhood" is composed of two characters: 童 (tóng), meaning "child" or "youth," and 年 (nián), meaning "year." Together, these characters convey the idea of the years of a person's life when they are a child.The character 童 (tóng) has a rich history in Chinese culture. It was originally used to refer to a young boy, but over time it came to be used more broadly to refer to any child, regardless of gender. The character 年 (nián) is also an ancient Chinese character, and it has been used for centuries to refer to a year.The combination of these two characters, 童年 (tónɡnián), creates a word that captures the essence of childhood. It refers to the time in a person's life when they are young and carefree, and it is a time that is often remembered with fondness.