The New Dictionary.
Search dictionary
Chinese/Dictionary entry

少子化

shǎo zǐ huàdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
declining birthrate (orthographic borrowing from Japanese 少子化 "shoushika")
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-316465c00b9cf9f4. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

少子化 少子化 [shao3 zi3 hua4] /declining birthrate (orthographic borrowing from Japanese 少子化 "shoushika")/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

  • 少
    shǎo

    few / less / to lack / to be missing / to stop (doing sth) / seldom

    shào

    young

  • 子
    zǐ

    son / child / seed / egg / small thing / 1st earthly branch: 11 p.m.–1 a.m., midnight, 11th solar month (7th December to 5th January), year of the rat / viscount, fourth of five orders of nobility 五等爵位[wǔ děng jué wèi] / ancient Chinese compass point: 0° (north) / subsidiary / subordinate / (prefix) sub-

    zi

    noun suffix, as in 椅子[yǐ zi] "chair"

  • 化
    huā

    See the full entry for source details.

    huà

    to make into / to change into / -ization / to ... -ize / to transform / abbr. for 化學|化学[huà xué]

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.