拼音
- xiǎo (third tone, dipping)
small, little; young, junior
Mnemonic
Three specks scattered round a hooked centre stroke — grains of sand, crumbs, whatever is too small to be drawn one piece at a time. Set as a hat over another character the hook disappears and only the three short strokes are left, ⺍, which is what you see on top of 学. Chinese pairs it with 大 constantly: 大小 is "size", 小学 is primary school, and 小时 — a "small hour" — is the hour on the clock.
A memory aid written by HSK Guide editors. It is not an etymology and does not describe the historical origin of the character.