small child; pipsqueak; small fry
Often affectionate or teasing when referring to a child; can be derogatory if used toward adults. Also used for chibi-style characters in anime/manga with oversized heads.
The kids in class used to call him 'shorty'.
Our little one is still three years old.
The chibi characters in that anime are cute.
Sensitive term when referring to a person's height; can be insulting. Use with caution.
He's the shortest in the class.
small animal; runt
Typically for the smallest or weakest animal in a litter; can be used affectionately.
This kitten is the runt and smaller than its siblings.
worn down; stubby
Prefix use, mainly in compounds like ちび鉛筆 (stubby pencil) or ちびた (worn down).
It's hard to write with a worn-down pencil.
He always uses a stubby little pencil.
ちび describes small physical size rather than age, while ガキ specifically means a child and often implies bratty behavior.
禿げ (はげ) means 'bald' and shares the kanji 禿 with 禿び (ちび), but ちび instead means 'small/short person or thing' and is unrelated to hair loss.
get blunt; dull; wear out
Standard kana spelling; the kanji 禿び is rarely used.
Katakana variant, common in casual writing.
Rare kanji form; not recommended for learners.
Derived from the verb 禿びる (chibiru), meaning 'to wear down' or 'become small'. The exact historical shift to a noun is uncertain.