Chinese Tattoo 百年好合: Meaning & Design Guide
百年好合 means “may you live a long and happy life together (wedding greeting)”, pronounced bai3 nian2 hao3 he2. Below: each character broken down, and how the phrase works as a tattoo.
Character by character
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning | Strokes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 百 | bǎi | one hundred; numerous, many | 6 |
| 年 | nián | year; new-years; person's age | 6 |
| 好 | hǎo | good, excellent, fine; well | 6 |
| 合 | hé | combine, unite, join; gather | 6 |
Per-character data: Unihan (Unicode).
Words using these characters
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 老百姓 | lǎo bǎi xìng | ordinary people | newest-5 |
| 百合 | bǎi hé | lily | newest-7 |
| 百分点 | bǎi fēn diǎn | percentage point | newest-6 |
| 今年 | jīn nián | this year | newest-1 |
| 去年 | qù nián | last year | newest-1 |
| 年轻 | nián qīng | young | newest-3 |
Words: HSK vocabulary list · meanings: CC-CEDICT.
Related expressions
Placing 百年好合
百年好合 is evenly weighted across its 4 characters (6–6 strokes), so it lays out cleanly in a line or a block without optical correction. It totals 24 strokes, so it needs a placement with room — the inner forearm or upper back rather than a narrow spot. Four-character phrases are usually set 2×2 or in one line; pick one and keep it consistent. Bring the stencil together with the pinyin and the meaning, and ask the artist to follow the stencil rather than redrawing the character freehand — freehand redrawing is the most common way a correct character loses a stroke and becomes a different one.
Design notes for 百年好合
百年好合 is a fixed four-character expression meaning “may you live a long and happy life together (wedding greeting)”, read bai3 nian2 hao3 he2. Because it is set, swapping any character changes the meaning — have the exact wording checked by a native reader before it goes on skin. Regular script (楷书) keeps every stroke countable, which matters when a Chinese reader checks it. Avoid mirroring or rotating the character, and avoid very fine or cursive styles at small sizes, where strokes merge into a shape that reads as a different character.
Frequently asked questions
What does 百年好合 mean?
百年好合 means “may you live a long and happy life together (wedding greeting)”.
How is 百年好合 pronounced?
百年好合 is pronounced bai3 nian2 hao3 he2.
Is 百年好合 a fixed expression?
Yes — it is a set phrase, which is safer than assembling characters yourself. Fixed expressions keep their established wording and meaning.
How should 百年好合 be laid out?
A four-character expression is usually written as a 2×2 square block or a single horizontal line. Keep the characters the same size and do not mirror or rotate any of them.
Which style suits 百年好合?
Bold regular script keeps every stroke clear. With multiple characters, avoid very fine or highly cursive styles — the smaller each character gets, the more the strokes merge.
Do I need to verify the phrase?
Yes. Confirm the wording, the meaning and the full context with a native reader, and check that the phrase is not a quotation about misfortune or parting.
How many strokes in total?
百年好合 is written with 24 strokes across 4 characters — which is why it needs more space than a single character.
Want 百年好合 as a ready-to-use stencil with a native-checked meaning card, sized for your tattoo artist?
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Character data: Unihan (Unicode) · words: HSK vocabulary & CC-CEDICT · How we verify this