小溪
xiǎo xī · HSK 7
streamlet
🏞️ 小溪 = 小 small + 溪 mountain stream, so a small stream is a brook
溪 (xī) on its own means a mountain creek; adding 小 (xiǎo, small) narrows it to a little brook or streamlet. The xī sound also rhymes with the xiǎo before it, giving the word a tidy sing-song echo.
小 — three small strokes around a central vertical
小 is a pictograph originally showing three tiny dots or specks, suggesting small particles or grains. Over time the dots became stylized strokes flanking a central line. The core meaning 'small' has stayed remarkably stable from oracle bone script to today.