---
title: "The Chinese Dragon (龙): Meaning, Colours, Types and the Nine Sons of the Dragon, With Pinyin"
description: "The Chinese dragon, 龙 lóng: what it means, how it differs from a Western dragon, what its colours mean (青龙, 黄龙, 金龙), why the emperor’s had five claws, the nine sons of the dragon from 囚牛 to 螭吻, and 32 dragon words and sayings with pinyin and sound."
canonical: "https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-dragon"
author: "Mandarin The Wild"
---

Free · 32 words

# The Chinese dragon (龙)

[Print as flashcards](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-flashcards?level=mine&words=%E9%BE%99%20%E7%A5%9E%E9%BE%99%20%E9%BE%99%E7%8E%8B%20%E7%9C%9F%E9%BE%99%E5%A4%A9%E5%AD%90%20%E9%BE%99%E7%9A%84%E4%BC%A0%E4%BA%BA%20%E9%9D%92%E9%BE%99%20%E9%BB%84%E9%BE%99%20%E9%87%91%E9%BE%99%20%E7%BA%A2%E9%BE%99%20%E9%BB%91%E9%BE%99%20%E7%81%AB%E9%BE%99%20%E8%9B%9F%E9%BE%99%20%E8%9E%AD%20%E8%9F%A0%E9%BE%99%20%E7%8B%BB%E7%8C%8A%20%E8%9E%AD%E5%90%BB%20%E9%BE%99%E5%B9%B4%20%E8%88%9E%E9%BE%99%20%E9%BE%99%E8%88%9F%20%E9%BE%99%E8%A2%8D%20%E9%BE%99%E7%8F%A0%20%E9%BE%99%E7%9C%BC%20%E9%BE%99%E8%99%BE%20%E6%81%90%E9%BE%99%20%E9%BE%99%E5%8D%B7%E9%A3%8E%20%E6%B0%B4%E9%BE%99%E5%A4%B4%20%E6%9C%9B%E5%AD%90%E6%88%90%E9%BE%99%20%E7%94%BB%E9%BE%99%E7%82%B9%E7%9D%9B%20%E9%BE%99%E9%A3%9E%E5%87%A4%E8%88%9E%20%E9%BE%99%E9%A9%AC%E7%B2%BE%E7%A5%9E%20%E9%BE%99%E5%87%A4%E5%91%88%E7%A5%A5%20%E9%BE%99%E7%94%9F%E4%B9%9D%E5%AD%90)

Speed

## The nine sons of the dragon (龙生九子)

| | In Chinese | Loves | Where you see it |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Qiuniu | 囚牛 qiúniú | Music | Carved on musical instruments |
| Yazi | 睚眦 yázì | Killing | On sword guards |
| Chaofeng | 嘲风 cháofēng | Adventure | On the corners of roofs |
| Pulao | 蒲牢 púláo | Roaring | As the handles of bells |
| Suanni | 狻猊 suānní | Sitting | Under the feet of Buddhas |
| Bixi | 赑屃 bìxì | Carrying weight | A tortoise under stone tablets |
| Bi’an | 狴犴 bì’àn | Lawsuits | Over prison gates |
| Fuxi | 负屃 fùxì | Literature | On the sides of stone tablets |
| Chiwen | 螭吻 chīwěn | Swallowing | On the ends of roof ridges, against fire |

## The dragon

lóng龙

dragon

shén神lóng龙

divine dragon

lóng龙wáng王

Dragon King (rain god of legend)

zhēn真lóng龙tiān天zǐ子

the true emperor; the Son of Heaven

lóng龙de的chuán传rén人

descendants of the dragon (the Chinese people)

## Dragons by colour

qīng青lóng龙

Azure Dragon (guardian of the east)

huáng黄lóng龙

yellow dragon

jīn金lóng龙

golden dragon

hóng红lóng龙

red dragon

hēi黑lóng龙

black dragon

huǒ火lóng龙

fire dragon

## Dragon creatures

jiāo蛟lóng龙

flood dragon (mythical creature)

chī螭

hornless dragon (in myth and ornament)

pán蟠lóng龙

coiled dragon

suān狻ní猊

lion (mythical beast in Chinese art)

chī螭wěn吻

chiwen (dragon-like ornament on roof ridges)

## Dragons in Chinese life

lóng龙nián年

Year of the Dragon

wǔ舞lóng龙

dragon dance

lóng龙zhōu舟

dragon boat

lóng龙páo袍

dragon robe; imperial robe

lóng龙zhū珠

dragon pearl

## Words with a dragon in them

lóng龙yǎn眼

longan (fruit)

lóng龙xiā虾

lobster

kǒng恐lóng龙

dinosaur

lóng龙juǎn卷fēng风

tornado

shuǐ水lóng龙tóu头

faucet; tap

## Dragon sayings

wàng望zǐ子chéng成lóng龙

to hope one's child will succeed

huà画lóng龙diǎn点jīng睛

to add the finishing touch

lóng龙fēi飞fèng凤wǔ舞

lively and vigorous (of calligraphy)

lóng龙mǎ马jīng精shén神

vigorous spirit (often a wish for the elderly)

lóng龙fèng凤chéng呈xiáng祥

dragon and phoenix bring good fortune (wedding wish)

lóng龙shēng生jiǔ九zǐ子

siblings can differ greatly from one another

## What does the Chinese dragon mean?

The dragon, 龙 (lóng), stands for power, strength and good fortune, and for the emperor, who was called 真龙天子 (zhēnlóng tiānzǐ), the true dragon, Son of Heaven. Dragons rule water and bring rain, so the Dragon Kings, 龙王 (Lóngwáng), were prayed to in droughts. Chinese people call themselves 龙的传人 (lóng de chuánrén), descendants of the dragon, and parents 望子成龙 (wàng zǐ chéng lóng), hope their son becomes a dragon.

## How is a Chinese dragon different from a Western dragon?

A Chinese 龙 is wise and lucky, flies without wings and lives in water and clouds; a Western dragon breathes fire, guards treasure and is usually evil. The Chinese dragon is long like a snake and, by an old description, has nine resemblances: the antlers of a stag, the head of a camel, the eyes of a demon, the neck of a snake, the belly of a clam, the scales of a carp, the claws of an eagle, the soles of a tiger and the ears of a cow. Some now write it loong in English to keep the two apart.

## What do the colours of Chinese dragons mean?

The 青龙 (Qīnglóng), the azure dragon, guards the east and spring. Yellow and gold, 黄龙 (huánglóng) and 金龙 (jīnlóng), were the emperor’s colours and the most honoured. A red dragon, 红龙 (hónglóng), is for luck and celebration, and the black dragon, 黑龙 (hēilóng), is linked to water and the north. The colours follow the five elements.

## Why do imperial dragons have five claws?

From the Yuan dynasty on, the five-clawed dragon was kept for the emperor alone, and princes and nobles used four claws. In the Ming and Qing it was a crime for anyone else to wear one: the emperor’s robe is a 龙袍 (lóngpáo), a dragon robe.

## What are the nine sons of the dragon?

龙生九子 (lóng shēng jiǔ zǐ), the dragon has nine sons, each different, which is why the phrase also means that siblings can differ completely. Ming writers listed them by what they love and where they guard: 囚牛 on instruments, 睚眦 on swords, 蒲牢 on bells, 狻猊 under Buddhas, 赑屃 carrying stone tablets and 螭吻 on roof ridges.

## How do you say dragon in Chinese?

龙 (lóng), in the second, rising tone; traditional 龍. You hear it in 龙年 (lóngnián), the Year of the Dragon, 舞龙 (wǔlóng), the dragon dance, and 龙舟 (lóngzhōu), dragon boats, but also in everyday words: a lobster is 龙虾 (lóngxiā), a dragon shrimp, a tornado 龙卷风 (lóngjuǎnfēng), and a tap 水龙头 (shuǐlóngtóu), a water dragon’s head.

## Can’t hear it?

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## More Chinese myth

- [Names from Chinese mythology](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-mythology-names)
- [The Chinese zodiac](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac)
- [Chinese good luck charms](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-good-luck-charms)
- [Chinese legends to read](https://mandarinthewild.com/library/topics/classic-tales)

Words, pinyin and meanings from our own dictionary; the nine sons, claws and nine resemblances from Wikipedia’s Chinese dragon, and lists of the nine sons differ between old books.