弥 meaning and stroke order
Complete, extensive, full; to fill
How to write 弥, stroke by stroke
8 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
Meaning of 弥
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- full
- to fill
- completely
- more
- brimming or overflowing
How 弥 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Bow.
弓 gives the meaning and 尔 hints at the sound.
Radical: 弓 (bow), shared by 29 characters on this site.
How to remember 弥
弥 is a bow 弓 (gōng) next to 尔 (ěr), which gives the sound. Picture a bow drawn all the way back, stretched to its fullest, to remember the idea of being full and filling a space.
弥 rarely appears alone in modern Chinese. You mostly meet it in words like 弥补 (míbǔ, to make up for) and 弥漫 (mímàn, to fill the air). Example: 房间里弥漫着花香。(Fángjiān lǐ mímàn zhe huāxiāng.) The room is filled with the scent of flowers.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes confuse 弥 with 你 (nǐ) or 称 (chēng) because they all contain 尔. Check the left side: 弥 has the bow 弓, not the person radical 亻 or the grain radical 禾.
Common words with 弥
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
弥 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 弥
How many strokes are in 弥?
弥 is written with 8 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 弥 mean?
弥 (mí) means complete, extensive, full; to fill. A common word with it is 弥补 (míbǔ), meaning "to complement; to make up for a deficiency".
How do you pronounce 弥?
弥 is pronounced mí, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 弥?
The radical of 弥 is 弓, which carries the idea of "bow". Dictionaries list 弥 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 弥?
The traditional form of 弥 is 彌 and 瀰. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 弥 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 弥 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 弥 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 弥补 and 补充?
弥补 (míbǔ) means to make up for a loss, mistake or shortfall, as in 弥补损失 (make up for a loss). 补充 (bǔchōng) means to add more or supplement, as in 补充说明 (add an explanation).
Why is the 撒 in 弥撒 read with a neutral tone?
弥撒 (mísa) is a borrowed word for the Catholic Mass, and the second syllable is usually said lightly in the neutral tone. Just learn it as a fixed word.