Chinese symbol for “thorns”
棘
jí
thorns
The closest CC-CEDICT match for thorns is 棘 (jí), defined as: thorns.
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
Related words
Other words that share a character with 棘.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 棘手 | jí shǒu | thorny (problem); intractable |
| 荆棘 (荊棘) | jīng jí | thistles and thorns; brambles |
| 披荆斩棘 (披荊斬棘) | pī jīng zhǎn jí | lit. to cut one's way through thistles and thorns (idiom); fig. to overcome all obstacles on the way |
| 沙棘 | shā jí | (botany) sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) |
| 棘轮 (棘輪) | jí lún | ratchet |
| 棘皮动物 (棘皮動物) | jí pí dòng wù | echinoderm, the phylum containing sea urchins, sea cucumbers etc |
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.