小说

• Pinyin: xiǎo shuō
• Hanzi breakdown: 小 = small; 说 = 讠(speech radical) + 兑 (exchange, phonetic), meaning to speak or tell

Meaning

Novel; fiction. A literary work of narrative prose.

The standard word for novels and fiction in Chinese. Can be classified by length: 长篇小说 (novel), 中篇小说 (novella), 短篇小说 (short story). Also used in compounds like 小说家 (novelist) and 网络小说 (web novel). Chinese web novels are an enormous cultural phenomenon, with platforms like Qidian having millions of titles.

Examples

1. 她喜欢看小说，特别是中国小说。 She likes reading novels, especially Chinese novels.
2. 这本小说的故事很有意思。 The story of this novel is very interesting.
3. 他每天晚上都看一个小时的小说。 He reads novels for an hour every evening.

Usage Guide

Context: literature, hobbies, entertainment

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 你最近在看什么小说？(What novel are you reading recently?)
• 我想写一本小说。(I want to write a novel.)

Don't Say

• 我在看一个小说电影 (Don't say 小说电影 — a movie adapted from a novel is called 小说改编的电影; 小说 itself refers only to the written work)

Origin & History

小 (xiǎo, small) + 说 (shuō, to speak/tell). Historically, 小说 meant 'minor talk' or 'trivial tales' — stories of lesser importance compared to official histories. Over time, it evolved to mean fiction and novels.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal