望 meaning and stroke order
Full moon; to hope; to expect
How to write 望, stroke by stroke
11 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
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- 3
- 4
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- 11
Meaning of 望
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- full moon
- to hope
- to expect
- to visit
- to gaze (into the distance)
- to look towards
How 望 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A king 王 gazing at the moon 月; 亡 provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 月 (moon), shared by 14 characters on this site.
How to remember 望
A king 王 (wáng) stands below and gazes up at the moon 月 (yuè), hoping for something. The top-left part 亡 (wáng) gives the sound, so the whole character reads wàng.
望 rarely stands alone in speech. It mostly appears in words about hope and looking, such as 希望 (xīwàng), 失望 (shīwàng), and 看望 (kànwàng). Example: 我希望明天不下雨。(Wǒ xīwàng míngtiān bú xià yǔ.) I hope it does not rain tomorrow.
Common mistake: Learners often write 亡 as 七 or forget its top dot, and some squeeze 月 so it looks like 日. Also watch the tone: 望 is fourth tone wàng, while its sound part 亡 and the 王 at the bottom are second tone wáng.
Common words with 望
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 希望 | xīwàng | to hope; a hope; a wish | HSK 3 |
| 愿望 | yuànwàng | desire; wish | HSK 3 |
| 失望 | shīwàng | disappointed; to lose hope | HSK 4 |
| 看望 | kànwàng | to pay a visit to; to see (sb) | HSK 4 |
| 渴望 | kěwàng | to thirst for; to long for | HSK 5 |
| 期望 | qīwàng | to have expectations; to earnestly hope | HSK 5 |
| 绝望 | juéwàng | to despair; to give up all hope | HSK 5 |
| 盼望 | pànwàng | to hope for; to look forward to | HSK 6 |
| 望见 | wàngjiàn | to espy; to spot | HSK 6 |
| 指望 | zhǐwàng | to count on; to hope for; prospect; hope | HSK 7-9 |
| 欲望 | yùwàng | desire; longing; appetite; craving | HSK 7-9 |
| 望远镜 | wàngyuǎnjìng | telescope (CL:部[bu4]); binoculars (CL:副[fu4]) | HSK 7-9 |
| 探望 | tànwàng | to visit; to call on sb | HSK 7-9 |
| 奢望 | shēwàng | an extravagant hope; to have excessive expectations | HSK 7-9 |
望 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 望
How many strokes are in 望?
望 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 望 mean?
望 (wàng) means full moon; to hope; to expect. A common word with it is 希望 (xīwàng), meaning "to hope; a hope; a wish".
How do you pronounce 望?
望 is pronounced wàng, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 望?
The radical of 望 is 月, which carries the idea of "moon". Dictionaries list 望 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 望?
The traditional form of 望 is 朢. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 望 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 望 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 望 is part of the HSK 3 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 2.
What is the difference between 希望 and 盼望?
希望 (xīwàng) is the everyday word for hope and can also be a noun, a hope. 盼望 (pànwàng) is a verb with a stronger feeling of eagerly waiting for something, like a holiday or a reunion.
Can 望 mean to look at something?
Yes. 望 means to gaze into the distance or look toward something, as in 望着远方 (wàngzhe yuǎnfāng), gazing into the distance. For ordinary looking, 看 (kàn) is much more common in speech.