吟 meaning and stroke order
To sing, to hum; to recite; a type of poetry
How to write 吟, 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 吟
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to chant; to recite
- verse; song (often used in titles of classical poems)
- (literary) to lament; to groan
- (bound form) (in poetry) the cry of certain animals and insects
- (music) rapid vibrato (technique for playing the guqin 古琴[gu3 qin2]) (cf. 猱[nao2], wide vibrato)
- old variant of 吟[yin2]
How 吟 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Mouth.
口 gives the meaning and 今 hints at the sound.
Radical: 口 (mouth), shared by 428 characters on this site.
How to remember 吟
吟 puts a mouth 口 next to 今 (jīn), which gives the sound. Picture a mouth slowly chanting a poem, the sound drawn out like jīn becoming yín.
吟 appears in literary verbs like 吟诗 (yín shī, to recite poetry) and 吟唱 (yínchàng, to chant), and in the everyday word 呻吟 (shēnyín, to moan). Example: 病人在床上呻吟。(Bìngrén zài chuáng shàng shēnyín.) The patient was groaning in bed.
Common mistake: Learners often read 吟 as jīn or jīng because of 今, but it is yín with a rising second tone. Also do not confuse it with 含 (hán, to hold in the mouth), where 今 sits on top of 口 instead of beside it.
Common words with 吟
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 呻吟 | shēnyín | to moan; to groan | |
| 吟唱 | yínchàng | to chant; to recite |
吟 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 吟
How many strokes are in 吟?
吟 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 吟 mean?
吟 (yín) means to sing, to hum; to recite; a type of poetry. A common word with it is 呻吟 (shēnyín), meaning "to moan; to groan".
How do you pronounce 吟?
吟 is pronounced yín, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 吟?
The radical of 吟 is 口, which carries the idea of "mouth". Dictionaries list 吟 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 吟?
The traditional form of 吟 is 唫. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 吟 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 吟 used for singing pop songs?
No. For ordinary singing use 唱 (chàng). 吟 suggests slow, rhythmic chanting of poetry or a literary style, so it sounds old-fashioned or poetic.
Why does 吟 appear in classical poem titles?
In classical poetry 吟 was a name for a kind of song or verse, much like 歌 or 行. A famous example is 《游子吟》 (Yóuzǐ Yín), Song of the Wandering Son by Meng Jiao.