妨 meaning and stroke order
Damage, harm; to impede, to obstruct; to undermine
How to write 妨, 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.
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Meaning of 妨
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to hinder
- (in the negative or interrogative) (no) harm
- (what) harm
How 妨 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Woman.
女 gives the meaning and 方 hints at the sound.
Radical: 女 (woman), shared by 156 characters on this site.
How to remember 妨
妨 is built from 女 (woman) on the left as the meaning part and 方 (fāng) on the right as the sound part. Think of someone standing in the way, blocking the path, and let 方 remind you that it sounds like fáng.
妨 rarely appears alone and mostly shows up in words like 妨碍 (fáng'ài, to hinder) and 不妨 (bùfáng, might as well). 不妨 is very handy for polite suggestions: 你不妨试一试。(Nǐ bùfáng shì yi shì.) You might as well give it a try.
Common mistake: Learners often read 妨 with first tone like its phonetic part 方 (fāng), but it is second tone, fáng, the same as 房 (fáng, room). Also do not mix it up with 防 (fáng, to guard against), which has the 阝 radical and means prevent rather than hinder.
Common words with 妨
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
妨 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 妨
How many strokes are in 妨?
妨 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 妨 mean?
妨 (fáng) means damage, harm; to impede, to obstruct; to undermine. A common word with it is 妨碍 (fáng'ài), meaning "to hinder; to obstruct".
How do you pronounce 妨?
妨 is pronounced fáng, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 妨?
The radical of 妨 is 女, which carries the idea of "woman". Dictionaries list 妨 under this radical.
Is 妨 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 妨 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 妨碍 and 妨害?
妨碍 (fáng'ài) means to get in the way of something, like noise hindering study. 妨害 (fánghài) is stronger and means to actually harm or damage something, such as health or public order.
How are 不妨, 无妨 and 何妨 different?
All three mean there is no harm in doing something. 不妨 (bùfáng) is the most common and is used before a verb to make a suggestion. 无妨 (wúfáng) often stands alone as a reply meaning it does not matter, and 何妨 (héfáng) is a more literary rhetorical question meaning why not.