灰 meaning and stroke order
Ash; dust; lime
How to write 灰, stroke by stroke
6 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
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
Meaning of 灰
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- ash
- dust
- lime
- gray
- discouraged; dejected
How 灰 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. The remains of a fire 火; 火 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 火 (fire), shared by 128 characters on this site.
How to remember 灰
Look for 火 (huǒ, fire) tucked under a covering stroke. What is left when a fire burns out and gets covered over is 灰 (huī), the ashes.
灰 shows up most often in words for gray color, dust, and ash, and in 灰心 (huīxīn) for feeling discouraged. Example: 桌子上有很多灰尘。(Zhuōzi shang yǒu hěn duō huīchén.) There is a lot of dust on the table.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 灰 with 炭 (tàn, charcoal), which also contains 火 but has 山 on top. Also keep the first tone on huī and do not drift toward huí (回).
Common words with 灰
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 灰色 | huīsè | gray; ash gray | HSK 5 |
| 灰尘 | huīchén | dust | HSK 7-9 |
| 灰心 | huīxīn | to lose heart; to be discouraged | HSK 7-9 |
| 骨灰 | gǔhuī | bone ash; cremation ashes; cremains | |
| 灰烬 | huījìn | ashes | |
| 烟灰缸 | yānhuīgāng | ashtray | |
| 灰飞烟灭 | huīfēiyānmiè | lit. scattered ashes and dispersed smoke (idiom); fig. to be annihilated | |
| 灰暗 | huī'àn | dull gray; drab | |
| 石灰 | shíhuī | lime (calcium oxide) | |
| 火山灰 | huǒshānhuī | volcanic ash | |
| 烟灰 | yānhuī | cigarette ash | |
| 灰熊 | huīxióng | grizzly bear | |
| 大灰狼 | dàhuīláng | big bad wolf |
灰 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 灰
Learning 灰 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 灰
How many strokes are in 灰?
灰 is written with 6 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 灰 mean?
灰 (huī) means ash; dust; lime. A common word with it is 灰色 (huīsè), meaning "gray; ash gray".
How do you pronounce 灰?
灰 is pronounced huī, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 灰?
The radical of 灰 is 火, which carries the idea of "fire". Dictionaries list 灰 under this radical.
Is 灰 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 灰 is part of the HSK 5 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do you say the color gray in Chinese?
Use 灰色 (huīsè). In speech people also say 灰 alone before a noun, as in 灰猫 (huī māo), a gray cat.
Does 灰心 mean someone has a gray heart?
Not literally. 灰心 (huīxīn) means to lose heart or feel discouraged, as if your enthusiasm has burned down to ash. A common phrase is 别灰心 (bié huīxīn), don't lose heart.