殿 meaning and stroke order
Hall; palace; temple
How to write 殿, stroke by stroke
13 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 殿
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- palace hall
How 殿 is built
Components of the character.
Radical: 殳 (tool), shared by 16 characters on this site.
How to remember 殿
On the left, 尸 sits over 共 (gòng, together), like a big roof sheltering many people gathered together. On the right, 殳 (shū) is a weapon in a hand, like guards standing at the door of a palace hall.
殿 (diàn) usually appears in compounds about grand buildings, such as 宫殿 (gōngdiàn) palace and 神殿 (shéndiàn) shrine. It also names specific halls in temples and palaces. Example: 故宫里有很多宫殿。(Gùgōng lǐ yǒu hěn duō gōngdiàn.) There are many palace halls in the Forbidden City.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 殿 with 臀 (tún, buttocks), which is 殿 with 月 added underneath. Watch the bottom so you do not turn a palace into a backside.
Common words with 殿
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
殿 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 殿
Learning 殿 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 殿
How many strokes are in 殿?
殿 is written with 13 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 殿 mean?
殿 (diàn) means hall; palace; temple. A common word with it is 宫殿 (gōngdiàn), meaning "palace".
How do you pronounce 殿?
殿 is pronounced diàn, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 殿?
The radical of 殿 is 殳, which carries the idea of "tool". Dictionaries list 殿 under this radical.
Is 殿 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 殿 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 殿下 (diànxià) mean and who is it used for?
殿下 is an honorific meaning Your Highness or His or Her Highness. It is used for princes and princesses, not for the emperor, who is called 陛下 (bìxià).
Is 殿 used in temple names?
Yes. Halls inside Buddhist temples are often named with 殿, such as 大雄宝殿 (Dàxióng Bǎodiàn), the main hall. Seeing 殿 on a sign usually means you are entering a major hall.