凋 meaning and stroke order
Withered, fallen; exhausted
How to write 凋, stroke by stroke
10 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
- 8
- 9
- 10
Meaning of 凋
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- withered
How 凋 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Ice.
冫 gives the meaning and 周 hints at the sound.
Radical: 冫 (ice), shared by 26 characters on this site.
How to remember 凋
The ice radical 冫 sits beside 周 (zhōu), which gives the sound. Picture frost settling all around (周) a plant until its leaves wither and fall.
凋 (diāo) rarely stands alone in speech. It appears mostly in words like 凋谢 (diāoxiè) and 凋零 (diāolíng), used for flowers and leaves, and figuratively for fading things or people passing away. Example: 秋天，树叶都凋零了。(Qiūtiān, shùyè dōu diāolíng le.) In autumn, the leaves all withered and fell.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 凋 with 雕 (diāo, to carve) or 调 (diào/tiáo), since they share the sound or the 周 part. Remember that 凋 has the two-dot ice radical 冫, not three-dot water 氵, because it is about cold making plants wither.
Common words with 凋
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 凋零 | diāolíng | withered; wilted | |
| 凋谢 | diāoxiè | to wither; to wilt |
凋 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 凋
How many strokes are in 凋?
凋 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 凋 mean?
凋 (diāo) means withered, fallen; exhausted. A common word with it is 凋零 (diāolíng), meaning "withered; wilted".
How do you pronounce 凋?
凋 is pronounced diāo, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 凋?
The radical of 凋 is 冫, which carries the idea of "ice". Dictionaries list 凋 under this radical.
What is the difference between 凋谢 and 凋零?
凋谢 (diāoxiè) focuses on flowers wilting and dropping. 凋零 (diāolíng) feels more literary and can describe leaves scattering or something declining, like a business or a generation of people.
Can 凋 be used for people?
Yes, in a figurative and formal way. 凋谢 or 凋零 can politely refer to people passing away or a group dwindling, as in 老一辈艺术家相继凋零 (the older generation of artists passed away one after another).