Chinese symbol for “rib”
肋骨
lèi gǔ
rib; measure word: 根 (gēn)
The closest CC-CEDICT match for rib is 肋骨 (lèi gǔ), defined as: rib; measure word: 根 (gēn).
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 “rib”
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 肋 | lèi | (bound form) rib; Taiwan pr. [le4] |
| 罗纹 (羅紋) | luó wén | rib (in fabric); ribbed pattern |
| 开涮 (開涮) | kāi shuàn | (coll.) to make fun of; to tease; to rib |
Related words
Other words that share a character with 肋骨.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 鸡肋 (雞肋) | jī lèi | chicken rib; (fig.) sth of little value yet hard to discard |
| 软肋 (軟肋) | ruǎn lèi | (anatomy) costal cartilage; (fig.) weak spot; weak link; vulnerability |
| 两肋插刀 (兩肋插刀) | liǎng lèi chā dāo | (lit.) to take knives in both sides (idiom); (fig.) to go to any lengths for a friend; to sacrifice oneself out of loyalty |
| 肋眼 | lèi yǎn | rib-eye steak |
| 肋间肌 (肋間肌) | lèi jiān jī | intercostal muscle |
| 骨头 (骨頭) | gǔ tou | bone; measure word: 根 (gēn), 块 (kuài) |
| 骨干 (骨幹) | gǔ gàn | diaphysis (long segment of a bone); fig. backbone |
| 骨折 | gǔ zhé | to suffer a fracture; (of a bone) to break |
See also: Japanese symbol for “rib”.
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.