煉 meaning and stroke order
To smelt, to refine; to distill, to condense
How to write 煉, 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 煉
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to refine
- to smelt
How 煉 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Fire.
火 gives the meaning and 柬 hints at the sound.
Radical: 火 (fire), shared by 128 characters on this site.
How to remember 煉
煉 (liàn) puts fire 火 on the left beside 柬 (jiǎn), which gives the sound. Picture fire burning away impurities until only refined metal is left.
煉 is the traditional form, and mainland China writes it as 炼. It appears mostly in compounds about refining materials or refining yourself through effort, such as 提煉 (tíliàn) and 修煉 (xiūliàn). Example: 他們從礦石中提煉金屬。(Tāmen cóng kuàngshí zhōng tíliàn jīnshǔ.) They extract metal from ore.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 煉 (liàn) with 練 (liàn, to practice), which has the silk radical 糸. Use 火 for smelting and refining, as in 煉鐵 (liàntiě), and 糸 for training, as in 練習 (liànxí).
Common words with 煉
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 提煉 | tíliàn | to extract (ore, minerals etc); to refine | HSK 7-9 |
| 煉獄 | liànyù | purgatory | |
| 試煉 | shìliàn | to refine with fire | |
| 修煉 | xiūliàn | (of Taoists) to practice austerities; to practice asceticism |
Questions about 煉
How many strokes are in 煉?
煉 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 煉 mean?
煉 (liàn) means to smelt, to refine; to distill, to condense. A common word with it is 提炼 (tíliàn), meaning "to extract (ore, minerals etc); to refine".
How do you pronounce 煉?
煉 is pronounced liàn, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 煉?
The radical of 煉 is 火, which carries the idea of "fire". Dictionaries list 煉 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 煉?
煉 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 炼, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 煉 used for refining oil?
Yes. 煉油 (liànyóu) means to refine oil, and an oil refinery is 煉油廠 (liànyóuchǎng). The same idea of using heat to purify carries over from metals to oil.
Can 煉 describe personal growth, not just metal?
Yes. Words like 試煉 (shìliàn), a trial that refines you, and 修煉 (xiūliàn), spiritual or ascetic practice, use the idea of being tempered by hardship. 煉獄 (liànyù) means purgatory, a place of purifying suffering.