Nature in Chinese
This list collects basic nature-related Chinese vocabulary useful for describing landscapes, weather, and living things. It covers common words about mountains, water, plants, and animals—ideal for beginner to intermediate learners expanding thematic vocabulary.
- 自然 zìrán — nature; the natural world
- 山 shān — mountain; hill
- 水 shuǐ — water; liquid; body of water
- 山水 Shānshuǐ — Sansui (Japanese electronics company, brand name)
- 山脉 shānmài — mountain range
- 河 hé — river
- 湖 hú — lake
- 海 hǎi — ocean; sea
- 海洋 hǎiyáng — ocean
- 森林 sēnlín — forest
- 树 shù — tree
- 树木 shùmù — trees; woody plants
- 花 huā — flower; blossom
- 花朵 huāduǒ — flower; blossom
- 草 cǎo — grass; turf; herbage
- 草地 cǎodì — lawn; meadow; sod; turf
- 草原 cǎoyuán — grassland; prairie
- 沙漠 shāmò — desert
- 岩石 yánshí — rock (geology); naturally formed solid mineral material
- 石头 shítou — stone; rock (natural, hard mineral material)
- 小溪 xiǎoxī — brook; small stream
- 瀑布 pùbù — waterfall
- 湿地 shīdì — wetland
- 岛屿 dǎoyǔ — island; islet (land surrounded by water)
- 海岸 hǎiàn — coast; seacoast
- 海滩 hǎitān — beach
- 风 fēng — wind (moving air)
- 云 yún — cloud; CL: 朵 duo3 (measure word for clouds)
- 雨 yǔ — rain (precipitation); showers
- 雪 xuě — snow
- 雷 léi — thunder; thunderclap; mine (explosive device)
- 电 diàn — lightning
- 太阳 tàiyang — the sun; the star at the center of the solar system
- 月亮 yuèliang — the moon (the Earth's natural satellite)
- 星星 xīngxing — a star; the stars in the sky (colloquial)
- 大地 dàdì — the earth; the ground; (poetic) Mother Earth
- 地球 dìqiú — the planet Earth; the world
- 土壤 tǔrǎng — soil; earth (the loose top layer of the ground in which plants grow)
- 植被 zhíbèi — vegetation; plant cover
- 根 gēn — root (of a plant); the underground part that absorbs water and nutrients
- 叶 xié — to be in harmony; to agree
- 枝 zhī — branch (of a tree); twig
- 果实 guǒshí — fruit (produced by a plant); edible or botanical fruit
- 种子 zhǒngzi — seed (botanical); kernel; germ
- 植物 zhíwù — plant; vegetation
- 动物 dòngwù — animal; a living creature (not a plant)
- 鸟 diǎo — penis (slang, vulgar) — variant of 屌 diāo
- 鱼 yú — fish; (used in names of various aquatic animals not strictly fish, e.g. abalone 鲍鱼, crocodile 鳄鱼, octopus 章鱼)
- 昆虫 kūnchóng — insect; (general term for invertebrate arthropods such as beetles, flies, ants, etc.)
- 蝴蝶 húdié — butterfly
- 蜜蜂 mìfēng — bee; honeybee
- 野生 yěshēng — wild; undomesticated (living or growing in natural conditions, not bred or cultivated by humans)
- 生态 shēngtài — ecology — the scientific study of interactions between organisms and their environment
- 保护 bǎohù — to protect; to defend; to safeguard
- 环保 huánbǎo — environmental protection
- 徒步 túbù — to go on foot; to walk; to hike
- 野营 yěyíng — to camp (outdoors); go camping