诚（cheng）🔊

Name meaning

诚 (Cheng) is one of the clearest virtue characters for a Chinese given name: sincerity, honesty, truthfulness and an inward state that matches outward speech. The traditional form 誠 (Cheng) contains the speech radical, so its force is not only 'being good inside,' but speaking and acting without falseness. Classical sources give it depth: Shuowen glosses 诚 (Cheng) through trustworthiness, while the Zhongyong treats 诚 (Cheng) as a condition of self-completion and moral reality. In modern names, 诚 (Cheng) feels upright, steady and socially legible. It suits a name that should project reliability, principled ambition, moral clarity or quiet strength rather than decorative elegance. Because it is direct and virtue-heavy, it works best when paired with a character that adds warmth, breadth, learning, light or aspiration.

Practical naming use

诚 (cheng) means sincerity, truthfulness and speech that can be trusted. Because the traditional form 誠 (Cheng) carries the speech radical, the character suggests words and conduct that match. In a name it feels upright, dependable and morally clear rather than ornamental. Chinese readers usually hear it as a promise-keeping quality, so the character works especially well when the full name should sound reliable in public life as well as personal relationships.

诚安 (Chengan): Cheng gives sincerity and An gives peace. The name feels trustworthy and reassuring, like a person whose honest words make others feel settled rather than suspicious.

Reference

Historical / name-use references