梗 meaning and stroke order
Stem, branch; to hinder, to block
How to write 梗, 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.
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- 11
Meaning of 梗
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- branch
- stem
- stalk
- to block
- to hinder
- (neologism that evolved from 哏[gen2], initially in Taiwan, during the first decade of the 21st century) memorable creative idea (joke, catchphrase, meme, neologism, witty remark etc)
How 梗 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Tree.
木 gives the meaning and 更 hints at the sound.
Radical: 木 (tree), shared by 388 characters on this site.
How to remember 梗
The tree 木 on the left tells you this is about plant parts like stems and stalks, and 更 (gèng) on the right gives the sound. Picture a stiff stalk that gets stuck and blocks the way, which links the meanings stem and to hinder.
Today 梗 is very common online for a joke, meme, or catchphrase, and people talk about 玩梗 (wán gěng, to play with a meme). It also appears in plant words like 菜梗 (cài gěng, vegetable stalk) and in 心肌梗塞 (xīnjī gěngsè, heart attack). Example: 这个梗太好笑了。(Zhège gěng tài hǎoxiào le.) This joke is so funny.
Common mistake: Learners often read 梗 with the fourth tone because 更 is often gèng, but 梗 is third tone, gěng. Do not confuse it with 埂 (gěng, ridge between fields), which has the earth radical 土 instead of 木.
梗 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 梗
How many strokes are in 梗?
梗 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 梗 mean?
梗 (gěng) means stem, branch; to hinder, to block.
How do you pronounce 梗?
梗 is pronounced gěng, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 梗?
The radical of 梗 is 木, which carries the idea of "tree". Dictionaries list 梗 under this radical.
What does 老梗 or 烂梗 mean?
老梗 (lǎo gěng) is an old, overused joke or meme. 烂梗 (làn gěng) is a bad or tired joke that people find annoying.
How did 梗 come to mean a meme or joke?
According to the dictionary data, this sense evolved from 哏 (gén), a word for a comic bit, starting in Taiwan in the 2000s. It then spread across the Chinese internet.