巖 meaning and stroke order
Cliff, precipice; cave, grotto
How to write 巖, stroke by stroke
23 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 巖
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- variant of 岩[yan2]
How 巖 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Mountain.
山 gives the meaning and 嚴 hints at the sound.
Radical: 山 (mountain), shared by 111 characters on this site.
How to remember 巖
A mountain 山 sits on top of 嚴 (yán), which gives the sound. Picture a stern, strict mountain face: a hard rock cliff.
巖 is the traditional variant of 岩 (yán), meaning rock, crag, or cliff. You will mostly see it in traditional-character texts, place names, and older writing. Example: 巖石很硬。(Yánshí hěn yìng.) The rock is very hard.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes confuse the lower part 嚴 (yán, strict) with the whole character and drop the 山 on top. Also note that in simplified Chinese you should write 岩, not 巖.
Questions about 巖
How many strokes are in 巖?
巖 is written with 23 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 巖 mean?
巖 (yán) means cliff, precipice; cave, grotto.
How do you pronounce 巖?
巖 is pronounced yán, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 巖?
The radical of 巖 is 山, which carries the idea of "mountain". Dictionaries list 巖 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 巖?
巖 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 岩, used in mainland China and Singapore.
What is the difference between 巖 and 岩?
They mean the same thing and are both read yán. 岩 is the standard form in simplified Chinese, while 巖 is a traditional variant that is common in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and older texts.
What common words use 巖 or 岩?
Frequent words include 巖石 (yánshí, rock), 巖洞 (yándòng, cave or grotto), and 熔巖 (róngyán, lava). In simplified Chinese these are written 岩石, 岩洞, and 熔岩.