冯 meaning and stroke order
To gallop; by dint of; surname
How to write 冯, stroke by stroke
5 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
Meaning of 冯
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to gallop
- to assist
- to attack
- to wade
- great
- old variant of 憑|凭[ping2]
How 冯 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Horse.
马 gives the meaning and 冫 hints at the sound.
Radical: 马 (horse), shared by 54 characters on this site.
How to remember 冯
冯 is a horse 马 (mǎ) with two little ice drops 冫 beside it. Picture a horse galloping so fast across the ice that chips fly off, which matches the old meaning "to gallop".
Today 冯 (féng) is used almost only as a common surname. You will see it in names like the writer 冯骥才 (Féng Jìcái). Example: 我的老师姓冯。 (Wǒ de lǎoshī xìng Féng.) My teacher's surname is Feng.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 冯 with 马 (mǎ) or with 冲 (chōng), which also has 冫 on the left. Also remember the surname is read féng with a second tone, not píng.
冯 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 冯
How many strokes are in 冯?
冯 is written with 5 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 冯 mean?
冯 (féng) means to gallop; by dint of; surname.
How do you pronounce 冯?
冯 is pronounced féng, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 冯?
The radical of 冯 is 马, which carries the idea of "horse". Dictionaries list 冯 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 冯?
The traditional form of 冯 is 馮. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 冯 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 冯 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 冯 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
When is 冯 read píng instead of féng?
The reading píng belongs to old literary senses like "to gallop", "to wade", or as an old variant of 凭 (píng). You will mainly meet it in classical texts, such as the idiom 暴虎冯河 (bào hǔ píng hé), to fight a tiger barehanded and wade a river.
Is 冯 a common Chinese surname?
Yes, 冯 is a fairly common surname in China. It is often romanized as Feng, and in Cantonese contexts you may see it written as Fung.