洋 meaning and stroke order
Ocean; vast; foreign
How to write 洋, stroke by stroke
9 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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- 9
Meaning of 洋
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- ocean
- vast
- foreign
- silver dollar or coin
How 洋 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Water.
氵 gives the meaning and 羊 hints at the sound.
Radical: 氵 (water), shared by 467 characters on this site.
How to remember 洋
洋 (yáng) is pictophonetic: the water radical 氵 gives the meaning, and 羊 (yáng, sheep) gives the sound. Picture white waves on the ocean rolling like a flock of sheep.
洋 appears in words for oceans, like 海洋 (hǎiyáng) and 太平洋 (Tàipíngyáng, Pacific Ocean). It also marks things that came from abroad, as in 洋葱 (yángcōng, onion) and 洋娃娃 (yángwáwa, doll). Example: 他在会上出洋相了。(Tā zài huì shàng chū yángxiàng le.) He made a fool of himself at the meeting.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 洋 with 样 (yàng, appearance), which has the wood radical 木 and a fourth tone. If the meaning is water or foreign, use 氵.
Common words with 洋
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 海洋 | hǎiyáng | ocean | HSK 6 |
| 洋溢 | yángyì | brimming with; steeped in | HSK 7-9 |
| 出洋相 | chū yángxiàng | to make a fool of oneself | HSK 7-9 |
| 汪洋 | wāngyáng | vast body of water | HSK 7-9 |
| 喜洋洋 | xǐyángyáng | radiant with joy | HSK 7-9 |
| 洋葱 | yángcōng | onion (Allium cepa); bulb onion | |
| 大洋 | dàyáng | ocean; (old) silver dollar | |
| 洋娃娃 | yángwáwa | doll (of Western appearance) | |
| 洋流 | yángliú | ocean current | |
| 洋人 | yángrén | foreigner; (esp.) Westerner | |
| 洋装 | yángzhuāng | Western-style dress | |
| 洋鬼子 | yángguǐzi | foreign devil; term of abuse for Westerners | |
| 巡洋舰 | xúnyángjiàn | cruiser (warship); battle cruiser |
洋 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 洋
How many strokes are in 洋?
洋 is written with 9 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 洋 mean?
洋 (yáng) means ocean; vast; foreign. A common word with it is 海洋 (hǎiyáng), meaning "ocean".
How do you pronounce 洋?
洋 is pronounced yáng, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 洋?
The radical of 洋 is 氵, which carries the idea of "water". Dictionaries list 洋 under this radical.
Is 洋 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 洋 is part of the HSK 6 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 海 and 洋?
Both relate to the sea. 海 (hǎi) usually means a sea or the sea in general, while 洋 refers to a vast ocean like 大西洋 (Dàxīyáng, Atlantic Ocean). Together, 海洋 means ocean or oceans.
Why does 洋 mean foreign?
Foreign goods and people historically arrived across the ocean, so 洋 came to mean foreign or Western in words like 洋葱 (onion) and 洋人 (yángrén, foreigner, somewhat dated). In older Chinese, 大洋 could also mean a silver dollar.