Chinese symbol for “explore”
探索
tàn suǒ
to explore; to probe
The closest CC-CEDICT match for explore is 探索 (tàn suǒ), defined as: to explore; to probe.
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Characters and stroke order
Other Chinese words for “explore”
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 探 | tàn | to explore; to search out |
| 探险 (探險) | tàn xiǎn | to explore; to go on an expedition |
| 勘探 | kān tàn | to explore; to survey |
| 探勘 | tàn kān | to explore; to survey |
| 发掘 (發掘) | fā jué | to excavate; to explore |
Related words
Other words that share a character with 探索.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 探讨 (探討) | tàn tǎo | to investigate; to probe |
| 侦探 (偵探) | zhēn tàn | detective; to do detective work |
| 探测 (探測) | tàn cè | to probe; to survey |
| 探险 (探險) | tàn xiǎn | to explore; to go on an expedition |
| 探究 | tàn jiū | to investigate; to delve |
| 搜索 | sōu suǒ | to search (a place, a database, online etc); to search for (sth) |
| 线索 (線索) | xiàn suǒ | trail; clues |
| 检索 (檢索) | jiǎn suǒ | to retrieve (data); to look up |
See also: Japanese symbol for “explore”.
Data: CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0); Unihan Database (Unicode License v3); Make Me a Hanzi (Arphic Public License (graphics.txt); LGPL-3.0-or-later (dictionary.txt)); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.