檸 meaning and stroke order
Lemon
How to write 檸, stroke by stroke
18 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 檸
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- used in 檸檬|柠檬[ning2 meng2]
How 檸 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Tree.
木 gives the meaning and 寧 hints at the sound.
Radical: 木 (tree), shared by 388 characters on this site.
How to remember 檸
The tree 木 (mù) on the left tells you this is a plant, and 寧 (níng) on the right gives the sound. Picture a lemon tree growing in a calm, peaceful (寧) garden.
檸 almost never appears alone. It shows up in 檸檬 (níngméng), meaning lemon, and in words built from it like 檸檬水 and 檸檬汁. Example: 我要一杯檸檬水。(Wǒ yào yì bēi níngméngshuǐ.) I'd like a glass of lemonade.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes write the right side as 宁 in traditional text or as 寧 in simplified text, mixing the two systems. The simplified form is 柠, so match it with 柠檬, and keep 檸 with 檬 in traditional text.
Common words with 檸
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
Questions about 檸
How many strokes are in 檸?
檸 is written with 18 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 檸 mean?
檸 (níng) means lemon. A common word with it is 柠檬 (níngméng), meaning "lemon".
How do you pronounce 檸?
檸 is pronounced níng, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 檸?
The radical of 檸 is 木, which carries the idea of "tree". Dictionaries list 檸 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 檸?
檸 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 柠, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Can 檸 be used by itself to mean lemon?
No. On its own it is not a normal word. You need the full word 檸檬 (níngméng) to say lemon.
What tone does 檬 have in 檸檬?
In standard Mandarin it is 檸檬 níngméng, with two second tones. In casual speech you may also hear the second syllable said lightly, but níngméng is the dictionary form.