勇 meaning and stroke order
Brave, courageous, fierce
How to write 勇, stroke by stroke
9 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
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- 4
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- 9
Meaning of 勇
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- brave
How 勇 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Strength.
力 gives the meaning and 甬 hints at the sound.
Radical: 力 (strength), shared by 44 characters on this site.
How to remember 勇
勇 is 甬 (yǒng) on top, which gives the sound, and 力 (lì, strength) underneath, which gives the meaning. Think of courage as strength rising up from below to push you forward.
勇 rarely stands alone in modern speech. It mostly appears in words like 勇敢 (yǒnggǎn, brave) and 勇气 (yǒngqì, courage). Example: 她很勇敢。(Tā hěn yǒnggǎn.) She is very brave.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes confuse 勇 with 涌 (yǒng, to gush) or 通 (tōng, to go through), which share the 甬 part. Only 勇 has 力 at the bottom, and the top of 甬 should not be written as 予 or 马.
Common words with 勇
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 勇敢 | yǒnggǎn | brave; courageous | HSK 4 |
| 勇气 | yǒngqì | courage | HSK 4 |
| 英勇 | yīngyǒng | heroic; gallant | HSK 4 |
| 勇往直前 | yǒngwǎng-zhíqián | to advance bravely | HSK 7-9 |
| 勇于 | yǒngyú | to dare to; to be brave enough to | HSK 7-9 |
| 奋勇 | fènyǒng | dauntless; to summon up courage and determination | HSK 7-9 |
| 见义勇为 | jiànyì-yǒngwéi | (idiom, from the Analects) (usu. of a passer-by who comes across a critical situation) to | HSK 7-9 |
| 勇士 | yǒngshì | a warrior; a brave person | |
| 鼓起勇气 | gǔqǐyǒngqì | to summon one's courage | |
| 勇猛 | yǒngměng | bold and powerful; brave and fierce | |
| 自告奋勇 | zìgàofènyǒng | to volunteer for; to offer to undertake | |
| 神勇 | shényǒng | extraordinarily brave; heroic |
勇 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 勇
Learning 勇 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 勇
How many strokes are in 勇?
勇 is written with 9 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 勇 mean?
勇 (yǒng) means brave, courageous, fierce. A common word with it is 勇敢 (yǒnggǎn), meaning "brave; courageous".
How do you pronounce 勇?
勇 is pronounced yǒng, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 勇?
The radical of 勇 is 力, which carries the idea of "strength". Dictionaries list 勇 under this radical.
Is 勇 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 勇 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 勇敢 and 勇气?
勇敢 (yǒnggǎn) is an adjective meaning brave, as in 他很勇敢. 勇气 (yǒngqì) is a noun meaning courage, used with verbs like 有 or 需要, as in 我没有勇气说 (I don't have the courage to say it).
How is 勇于 used in a sentence?
勇于 (yǒngyú) is followed by a verb and means to be brave enough to do something. It sounds a bit formal, as in 勇于承认错误 (yǒngyú chéngrèn cuòwù), to have the courage to admit mistakes.