懈 meaning and stroke order
Idle, relaxed; negligent, remiss
How to write 懈, stroke by stroke
16 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 懈
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- lax
- negligent
How 懈 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Heart.
忄 gives the meaning and 解 hints at the sound.
Radical: 忄 (heart), shared by 167 characters on this site.
How to remember 懈
懈 combines the heart radical 忄 with 解 (jiě, to untie), which also gives the sound. Picture your heart coming untied, so your effort and attention go slack.
懈 almost never appears alone in modern Chinese. It shows up in set words like 松懈 (sōngxiè) and idioms like 坚持不懈 (jiānchí-bùxiè), often in formal writing or encouragement. Example: 我们要坚持不懈地努力。(Wǒmen yào jiānchí-bùxiè de nǔlì.) We must keep working without letting up.
Common mistake: Learners often read 懈 as jiě because of the phonetic 解, but 懈 is pronounced xiè with a fourth tone. Also do not confuse it with 蟹 (xiè, crab), which has the same sound and the 解 part but puts 虫 underneath.
Common words with 懈
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
懈 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 懈
How many strokes are in 懈?
懈 is written with 16 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 懈 mean?
懈 (xiè) means idle, relaxed; negligent, remiss. A common word with it is 不懈 (bùxiè), meaning "untiring; unremitting".
How do you pronounce 懈?
懈 is pronounced xiè, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 懈?
The radical of 懈 is 忄, which carries the idea of "heart". Dictionaries list 懈 under this radical.
Is 懈 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 懈 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 无懈可击 mean literally?
It literally means there is no slack or gap that can be attacked. It describes an argument, performance, or plan so solid that nobody can find a fault in it.
Is 松懈 positive or negative?
It is usually negative. 松懈 means relaxing your effort or discipline when you should stay alert, as in 考试前不能松懈 (kǎoshì qián bù néng sōngxiè), you can't slack off before the exam.