嗯 meaning and stroke order
Interjection indicating agreement or appreciation
How to write 嗯, stroke by stroke
13 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 嗯
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (a groaning sound)
- (nonverbal grunt as interjection)
- OK, yeah
- what?
- interjection indicating approval, appreciation or agreement
How 嗯 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Mouth.
口 gives the meaning and 恩 hints at the sound.
Radical: 口 (mouth), shared by 428 characters on this site.
How to remember 嗯
嗯 combines 口 (mouth) with 恩 (ēn), which gives the sound. Picture a mouth making the sound "en" to show you are listening or agreeing.
嗯 is a very common filler in speech and texting, used to say "yeah" or "OK" or to show you are following along. Its tone shifts with meaning: a falling èn often means agreement, and a rising version can mean "what?" Example: 嗯，我知道了。(Èn, wǒ zhīdào le.) Yeah, I got it.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 嗯 with 恩 (ēn, kindness or favor), which lacks the 口 mouth on the left. Only 嗯 is the interjection. 恩 appears in words like 恩人 (ēnrén, benefactor).
嗯 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 嗯
How many strokes are in 嗯?
嗯 is written with 13 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 嗯 mean?
嗯 (en) means interjection indicating agreement or appreciation.
How do you pronounce 嗯?
嗯 is pronounced en, in the neutral tone (short and light).
What is the radical of 嗯?
The radical of 嗯 is 口, which carries the idea of "mouth". Dictionaries list 嗯 under this radical.
Is it rude to reply to a message with just 嗯?
It can be. A single 嗯 in a text may sound cold or uninterested to some people. Many speakers soften it to 嗯嗯 (èn èn) or add a word like 好的 (hǎo de) to sound friendlier.
How do you actually pronounce 嗯?
It is often said as a nasal sound with the mouth nearly closed, closer to "ng" or "n" than to a full "en." Dictionaries list it as en, ēn, or èn, and the tone follows your meaning.