娥 meaning and stroke order
Beautiful, pretty; good; surname
How to write 娥, stroke by stroke
10 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 娥
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- good
- beautiful
How 娥 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Woman.
女 gives the meaning and 我 hints at the sound.
Radical: 女 (woman), shared by 156 characters on this site.
How to remember 娥
娥 is built from 女 (nǚ, woman), which gives the meaning, and 我 (wǒ), which hints at the sound é. Picture a woman saying "I am beautiful" to remember a lovely lady.
娥 is rarely used alone in modern Chinese. You mostly see it in names, especially the moon goddess 嫦娥 (Cháng'é), and in women's given names. Example: 中秋节的时候，人们会讲嫦娥的故事。(Zhōngqiū jié de shíhou, rénmen huì jiǎng Cháng'é de gùshi.) At the Mid-Autumn Festival, people tell the story of Chang'e.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 娥 with 饿 (è, hungry) and 鹅 (é, goose), which share the 我 part. Check the left side: 女 for a woman, 饣 for food. 鹅 has 鸟 for bird on the right.
Common words with 娥
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 嫦娥 | Cháng'é | Chang'e, the lady in the moon (Chinese mythology); one of the Chang'e series of PRC lunar | HSK 7-9 |
Questions about 娥
How many strokes are in 娥?
娥 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 娥 mean?
娥 (é) means beautiful, pretty; good; surname. A common word with it is 嫦娥 (Cháng'é), meaning "Chang'e, the lady in the moon (Chinese mythology); one of the Chang'e series of PRC lunar ".
How do you pronounce 娥?
娥 is pronounced é, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 娥?
The radical of 娥 is 女, which carries the idea of "woman". Dictionaries list 娥 under this radical.
Is 娥 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 娥 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why are China's moon probes called 嫦娥?
China named its lunar exploration program after 嫦娥 (Cháng'é), the woman in Chinese legend who flew to the moon. The missions are numbered, such as 嫦娥四号 (Cháng'é sì hào), Chang'e 4.
Can I use 娥 by itself to say someone is pretty?
Not in everyday speech. To call someone pretty, say 漂亮 (piàoliang) or 美 (měi). 娥 with this meaning appears mainly in classical texts and names.