免 meaning and stroke order
To excuse sb; to exempt; to remove or dismiss from office
How to write 免, stroke by stroke
7 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
Meaning of 免
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to excuse sb
- to exempt
- to remove or dismiss from office
- to avoid
- to avert
- to escape
- old variant of 絻[wen4]
How 免 is built
Components of the character.
Radical: 儿 (son), shared by 24 characters on this site.
How to remember 免
Picture a person on legs 儿 at the bottom, with a box 口 and a little hat ⺈ on top. They have slipped out of the box and walked away, so they are spared and escape.
免 (miǎn) means to exempt, avoid, or let someone off, and it usually appears in compounds like 免费 (miǎnfèi), 避免 (bìmiǎn) and 以免 (yǐmiǎn). 以免 and 免得 link two clauses to mean "so as not to". Example: 早点走，以免迟到。(Zǎo diǎn zǒu, yǐmiǎn chídào.) Leave early so you won't be late.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 免 (miǎn) with 兔 (tù, rabbit), which looks the same but has an extra dot at the bottom right. Remember that the rabbit has a tail and 免 does not.
Common words with 免
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 免费 | miǎnfèi | free (of charge) | HSK 4 |
| 避免 | bìmiǎn | to avert; to prevent | HSK 4 |
| 难免 | nánmiǎn | hard to avoid; difficult to escape from | HSK 4 |
| 不免 | bùmiǎn | inevitably | HSK 5 |
| 免得 | miǎnde | so as not to; so as to avoid | HSK 6 |
| 以免 | yǐmiǎn | in order to avoid; so as not to | HSK 7-9 |
| 不可避免 | bùkě-bìmiǎn | (idiom) inevitable; unavoidable | HSK 7-9 |
| 免疫 | miǎnyì | immunity (to disease) | HSK 7-9 |
| 免除 | miǎnchú | to prevent; to avoid | HSK 7-9 |
| 幸免 | xìngmiǎn | to avoid (an unpleasant fate) | HSK 7-9 |
| 未免 | wèimiǎn | unavoidably; can't help | HSK 7-9 |
| 免不了 | miǎnbuliǎo | unavoidable; can't be avoided | HSK 7-9 |
| 罢免 | bàmiǎn | to remove sb from their post; to dismiss | HSK 7-9 |
| 减免 | jiǎnmiǎn | to reduce or waive (taxes, punishment, rent, tuition etc) | HSK 7-9 |
免 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 免
Learning 免 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 免
How many strokes are in 免?
免 is written with 7 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 免 mean?
免 (miǎn) means to excuse sb; to exempt; to remove or dismiss from office. A common word with it is 免费 (miǎnfèi), meaning "free (of charge)".
How do you pronounce 免?
免 is pronounced miǎn, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 免?
The radical of 免 is 儿, which carries the idea of "son". Dictionaries list 免 under this radical.
Is 免 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 免 is part of the HSK 4 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 3.
What is the difference between 难免 and 不免?
难免 (nánmiǎn) means something is hard to avoid and often comes before a verb or stands as a comment, as in 犯错是难免的 (making mistakes is unavoidable). 不免 (bùmiǎn) is an adverb meaning "cannot help but" and goes directly before a verb, as in 他不免有点紧张 (he couldn't help feeling a bit nervous).
Does 免 have another pronunciation?
Yes, it can be read wèn as an old variant of 絻, but this is rare. In modern Chinese you can almost always read it as miǎn.