Dong Chinese dictionary

nǎi

then

Original meaning:

breast

Possibly depicts a woman standing sideways with her breasts protruding. Based on the original meaning "breast", now written as 奶. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.

Evolution

Oracle script

(~1250-1000 BC)

Bronze script

Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)

Seal script

Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical script

Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Regular script

Modern

Definitions

乃

nǎi

then; really, indeed; as it turned out, after all; namely; to be; thus; so; therefore; only; thereupon

乃 (廼)

nǎi

variant of 乃[nǎi]

Most common words with 乃

Freq.	Word	Meaning
	乃	to be
	木乃伊	mummy (preserved corpse) (loanword)
	乃至	and even
	乃是	equivalent to either 是[shì] or 就是[jiùshì]
	康乃馨	carnation or clove pink