瘤 meaning and stroke order
Tumor, lump, goiter
How to write 瘤, stroke by stroke
15 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 瘤
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- tumor
- old variant of 瘤[liu2]
How 瘤 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Sickness.
疒 gives the meaning and 留 hints at the sound.
Radical: 疒 (sickness), shared by 127 characters on this site.
How to remember 瘤
瘤 combines the sickness radical 疒 with 留 (liú, to stay), which also gives the sound. Picture an illness that stays and builds up in one spot, forming a lump.
瘤 rarely appears alone in modern speech. It usually shows up in compounds like 肿瘤 (zhǒngliú, tumor) and 脑瘤 (nǎoliú, brain tumor). Example: 医生说这个肿瘤是良性的。(Yīshēng shuō zhège zhǒngliú shì liángxìng de.) The doctor said this tumor is benign.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes write 留 without the 疒 frame, or confuse 瘤 with 溜 (liū, to slip away), which has the water radical and a first tone. Remember 瘤 is second tone, just like 留.
Common words with 瘤
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
瘤 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 瘤
How many strokes are in 瘤?
瘤 is written with 15 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 瘤 mean?
瘤 (liú) means tumor, lump, goiter. A common word with it is 肿瘤 (zhǒngliú), meaning "tumor".
How do you pronounce 瘤?
瘤 is pronounced liú, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 瘤?
The radical of 瘤 is 疒, which carries the idea of "sickness". Dictionaries list 瘤 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 瘤?
The traditional form of 瘤 is 癅. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 瘤 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 瘤 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 瘤 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 肿瘤 and 癌?
肿瘤 (zhǒngliú) means any tumor, benign or malignant. 癌 (ái) specifically means cancer. A benign tumor is 良性肿瘤 (liángxìng zhǒngliú), and a malignant one is 恶性肿瘤 (èxìng zhǒngliú).
Can 毒瘤 be used outside of medicine?
Yes. 毒瘤 (dúliú) is often used figuratively for a harmful problem in society, similar to calling something a cancer or scourge in English. For example, 腐败是社会的毒瘤 means corruption is a cancer on society.