墾 meaning and stroke order
To cultivate, to farm; to reclaim
How to write 墾, stroke by stroke
16 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 墾
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to reclaim (land)
- to cultivate
How 墾 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Earth.
土 gives the meaning and 貇 hints at the sound.
Radical: 土 (soil), shared by 183 characters on this site.
How to remember 墾
墾 (kěn) sits on 土 (tǔ, earth), which tells you the meaning is about land. The top part 貇 gives the sound, so picture breaking open hard earth to make it ready for farming.
墾 means to open up or reclaim land for farming, and it mostly appears in compound words rather than alone. The most common word is 开垦 (kāikěn), written 開墾 in traditional script. Example: 他们开垦了一片荒地。(Tāmen kāikěn le yí piàn huāngdì.) They cleared a piece of wasteland for farming.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 墾 (kěn) with 懇 (kěn, sincere), as in 诚恳 (chéngkěn). They share the same top part and sound, but 墾 has 土 (earth) at the bottom while 懇 has 心 (heart).
Common words with 墾
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 開墾 | kāikěn | to clear a wild area for cultivation; to put under the plow | HSK 7-9 |
Questions about 墾
How many strokes are in 墾?
墾 is written with 16 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 墾 mean?
墾 (kěn) means to cultivate, to farm; to reclaim. A common word with it is 开垦 (kāikěn), meaning "to clear a wild area for cultivation; to put under the plow".
How do you pronounce 墾?
墾 is pronounced kěn, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 墾?
The radical of 墾 is 土, which carries the idea of "soil". Dictionaries list 墾 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 墾?
墾 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 垦, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 墾 used in simplified Chinese?
Mainland simplified Chinese writes this character as 垦. You will see 墾 in traditional texts, for example in Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Can 墾 be used as a verb on its own?
It is rarely used alone in modern speech. People usually say 开垦 (kāikěn) or use it in words like 垦荒 (kěnhuāng), to reclaim wasteland.