King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Chinese symbol for “gradation”

层次
céng cì
Traditional: 層次
layer; level; gradation; arrangement of ideas

The closest CC-CEDICT match for gradation is 层次 (céng cì), defined as: layer; level; gradation; arrangement of ideas; (a person's) standing.

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

层 céng
layer, floor, story, stratum
radical 44 ⼫ · 7 strokes
次 cì
order, sequence; second, next; one after the other
radical 76 ⽋ · 6 strokes

Traditional forms

Related words

Other words that share a character with 层次.

WordPinyinMeaning
基层 (基層)jī céngbasic level; grassroots unit
层面 (層面)céng miànaspect; facet; level (political, psychological, spiritual etc)
高层 (高層)gāo cénghigh-rise; high level; high class
阶层 (階層)jiē céngsocial class
一层 (一層)yī céngone layer; one level
一次yī cìfirst; first time
第一次dì yī cìthe first time; for the first time
再次zài cìonce more; once again

See also: Japanese symbol for “gradation”.

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.