狮 meaning and stroke order
Lion
How to write 狮, 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.
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Meaning of 狮
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (bound form) lion
How 狮 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Animal.
犭 gives the meaning and 师 hints at the sound.
Radical: 犭 (dog), shared by 88 characters on this site.
How to remember 狮
The animal radical 犭 on the left tells you this is a beast, and 师 (shī, teacher or master) on the right gives the sound. Picture the lion as the master of all animals.
狮 is a bound form, so it almost always appears inside words like 狮子 (shīzi), 海狮 (hǎishī) and 舞狮 (wǔshī). On its own, say 狮子 for "lion". Example: 动物园里有两只狮子。(Dòngwùyuán lǐ yǒu liǎng zhī shīzi.) There are two lions at the zoo.
Common mistake: Learners often write 师 alone or forget the 犭 radical, which turns "lion" into "teacher". Also, in 狮子 the 子 is in the neutral tone (shīzi), not third tone zǐ.
Common words with 狮
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
狮 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 狮
How many strokes are in 狮?
狮 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 狮 mean?
狮 (shī) means lion. A common word with it is 狮子 (shīzi), meaning "lion".
How do you pronounce 狮?
狮 is pronounced shī, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 狮?
The radical of 狮 is 犭, which carries the idea of "dog". Dictionaries list 狮 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 狮?
The traditional form of 狮 is 獅. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 狮 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 狮 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 狮 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 狮子 and 老虎?
狮子 (shīzi) is a lion and 老虎 (lǎohǔ) is a tiger. Both use different characters, so do not mix them up even though both are big cats.
When do people perform 舞狮 (lion dance)?
舞狮 is commonly performed at Chinese New Year, store openings and festivals. It is believed to bring good luck and drive away bad fortune.