众生

眾生
zhòngshēng
noun #33,799

Meanings

  1. 1 all living beings
  2. 2 all sentient beings
  3. 3 all creatures

Examples

Fójiào jiǎngjiu cíbēi wéi huái, pǔdù zhòngshēng.
Buddhism emphasizes compassion and saving all sentient beings.
Yúnyún zhòngshēng zhōng, néng zhǎodào zhījǐ shí shǔ bùyì.
Among the multitudes of people, finding a true friend is not easy.

Tips

culture
众生 is a core Buddhist term translating Sanskrit sattva — all beings caught in the cycle of rebirth, including humans, animals, and other realms. The phrase 众生 (pǔdù zhòngshēng, 'universally saving all beings') captures the bodhisattva ideal.
usage
Often paired in literary contexts: 芸芸众生 (yúnyún zhòngshēng) means 'the teeming masses' and is the most common collocation in modern writing.

Stroke Order

zhòng
shēng