寝 meaning and stroke order
To sleep, to rest; bedroom
How to write 寝, 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.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
Meaning of 寝
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (bound form) to lie down to sleep or rest
- (bound form) bedroom
- (bound form) imperial tomb
- (literary) to stop; to cease
- old variant of 寢|寝[qin3]
How 寝 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A person 彐冖又 lying down on a bed 丬 in their home 宀.
Radical: 宀 (roof), shared by 67 characters on this site.
How to remember 寝
Under the roof 宀 of a home, a person (彐冖又) lies down on a bed 丬. A roof plus a bed means a place to sleep, so 寝 (qǐn) is sleeping or a bedroom.
寝 is a bound form, so it appears inside words rather than alone. The most common word is 寝室 (qǐnshì), which in everyday speech usually means a student dormitory room. Example: 我们寝室有四个人。(Wǒmen qǐnshì yǒu sì gè rén.) There are four people in our dorm room.
Common mistake: Learners often try to use 寝 by itself to mean "to sleep," but in normal speech you say 睡觉 (shuìjiào), and 寝 only shows up in set words like 寝室 or 就寝. Also watch the left part 丬. It is easy to forget it or write it as 冫, but it is the bed in the character.
Common words with 寝
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
寝 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 寝
How many strokes are in 寝?
寝 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 寝 mean?
寝 (qǐn) means to sleep, to rest; bedroom. A common word with it is 寝室 (qǐnshì), meaning "bedroom; dormitory".
How do you pronounce 寝?
寝 is pronounced qǐn, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 寝?
The radical of 寝 is 宀, which carries the idea of "roof". Dictionaries list 寝 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 寝?
The traditional form of 寝 is 寑 and 寢. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 寝 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 寝 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 寝 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 寝室 and 宿舍?
宿舍 (sùshè) usually means the dormitory building or dorm housing in general. 寝室 often means the individual room you share with roommates. In many parts of China students use 寝室 casually for their dorm room.
How do you use 废寝忘食 in a sentence?
It describes someone so absorbed in work or study that they forget to sleep and eat. For example: 他为了考试废寝忘食地学习。(Tā wèile kǎoshì fèiqǐn-wàngshí de xuéxí.) He studied so hard for the exam that he skipped sleep and meals.