烈 meaning and stroke order
Fiery, violent; ardent, vehement
How to write 烈, stroke by stroke
10 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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- 10
Meaning of 烈
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- ardent
- intense
- fierce
- stern
- upright
- to give one's life for a noble cause
How 烈 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Fire.
灬 gives the meaning and 列 hints at the sound.
Radical: 灬 (fire), shared by 28 characters on this site.
How to remember 烈
烈 is pictophonetic: 列 (liè) on top gives the sound, and the four dots 灬 at the bottom are fire. Picture a row (列) of flames burning fiercely to remember 'intense, fiery'.
烈 rarely stands alone in modern speech. It mostly appears in two-character words that describe strong feelings or forces, such as 强烈 (qiángliè), 热烈 (rèliè) and 激烈 (jīliè). Example: 比赛非常激烈。(Bǐsài fēicháng jīliè.) The competition was very fierce.
Common mistake: Learners often write 列 alone or confuse 烈 with 裂 (liè, to crack), which has 衣 at the bottom instead of the fire dots. If the meaning is 'intense' or 'fiery', you need the fire 灬.
Common words with 烈
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 强烈 | qiángliè | strong; intense | HSK 3 |
| 热烈 | rèliè | enthusiastic; ardent | HSK 3 |
| 激烈 | jīliè | (of competition or fighting) intense; fierce | HSK 4 |
| 猛烈 | měngliè | fierce; violent; vigorous; intense | HSK 7-9 |
| 剧烈 | jùliè | violent; acute; severe; fierce | HSK 7-9 |
| 烈士 | lièshì | martyr | HSK 7-9 |
| 兴高采烈 | xìnggāo-cǎiliè | happy and excited (idiom); in high spirits | HSK 7-9 |
| 愈演愈烈 | yùyǎn-yùliè | ever more critical; problems get more and more intense | HSK 7-9 |
| 烈酒 | lièjiǔ | strong alcoholic drink | |
| 烈火 | lièhuǒ | raging inferno; blaze | |
| 烈焰 | lièyàn | raging flames | |
| 火烈鸟 | huǒlièniǎo | flamingo | |
| 惨烈 | cǎnliè | bitter; desperate | |
| 烈日 | Lièrì | scorching sun |
烈 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 烈
How many strokes are in 烈?
烈 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 烈 mean?
烈 (liè) means fiery, violent; ardent, vehement. A common word with it is 强烈 (qiángliè), meaning "strong; intense".
How do you pronounce 烈?
烈 is pronounced liè, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 烈?
The radical of 烈 is 灬, which carries the idea of "fire". Dictionaries list 烈 under this radical.
Is 烈 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 烈 is part of the HSK 3 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 3.
What is the difference between 热烈 and 激烈?
热烈 (rèliè) is warm and positive, used for applause, welcomes or discussions full of enthusiasm. 激烈 (jīliè) means fierce or heated, used for competition, fighting or arguments.
Why does 烈 appear in the word for martyr?
One sense of 烈 is upright and willing to give one's life for a noble cause. So 烈士 (lièshì) means a martyr, a person who died for a cause, often used for revolutionary or war heroes.