漢字Kanji · in States & Attributes
百: hundred
一 and 白 carry the meaning
Oracle bone · Shang Bronze · Zhou Small seal · Qin Today
Oracle bone: Wikimedia Commons, traced from Academia Sinica, CC0. Bronze and small seal: Wikimedia Commons, public domain. Today’s form: KanjiVG, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Two readings, and the words that use each
ヒャクhyaku · on'yomi · in compounds
- 百ひゃく100
- 百倍ひゃくばいhundredfold
- 百姓ひゃくしょうfarmer
- 六百ろっぴゃく600
- 八百はっぴゃく800
ビャクbyaku · on'yomi
- 三百さんびゃく300
Special readingsThese words are read as a whole, not from the readings above.
- 八百屋やおやgreengrocer
Also read もも, with no example words in our sources. Words: Kanji alive, CC BY 4.0.
Where it comes from
Origin · sourced
Phono-semantic compound (形聲)一 (meaning) + 白 (sound)
Source: Wiktionary, 百 (rev. 92550558), CC BY-SA 4.0
Memory story · made up to help you remember
“One (一) + white (白). While its origins are complex, it suggests "one" massive number that is as bright and clear as "white"—the number one hundred.”
Connections
Also read ヒャク
1 kanji shares this on'yomiAlso read ビャク
1 kanji shares this on'yomiEasy to confuse
The difference, side by sideIn ChineseSame character in simplified and traditional · bǎi
Same form: 百 is written the same way in mainland China (simplified) and in Taiwan and Hong Kong (traditional).
- Simplified
- 百 mainland China, Singapore
- Traditional
- 百 Taiwan, Hong Kong
Pinyin bǎi most common reading
Forms and pinyin: Unicode Unihan database (Unicode License v3). Pinyin lists the most common reading, not every reading.