癩 meaning and stroke order
Leprosy; scabies, mange; shoddy
How to write 癩, stroke by stroke
21 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 癩
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- scabies
- skin disease
How 癩 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Sickness.
疒 gives the meaning and 賴 hints at the sound.
Radical: 疒 (sickness), shared by 127 characters on this site.
How to remember 癩
The sickness radical 疒 wraps around 賴 (lài), which gives the sound. Picture a skin disease that clings to you and relies on you like 賴 (to depend on), refusing to leave.
癩 (lài) is the traditional form of 癞 and appears in words for skin diseases, such as 癩病 (làibìng, leprosy). It also shows up in colloquial words like 癩蛤蟆 (làiháma, toad), named for its bumpy skin. Example: 癩蛤蟆想吃天鵝肉。(Làiháma xiǎng chī tiān'é ròu.) A toad wants to eat swan meat, meaning someone is aiming far above their station.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes drop the 疒 radical and write 賴 (lài, to rely on), which has the same sound but no disease meaning. Others confuse it with 瘋 (fēng, mad), since both sit under 疒, but 瘋 has 風 inside.
Questions about 癩
How many strokes are in 癩?
癩 is written with 21 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 癩 mean?
癩 (lài) means leprosy; scabies, mange; shoddy.
How do you pronounce 癩?
癩 is pronounced lài, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 癩?
The radical of 癩 is 疒, which carries the idea of "sickness". Dictionaries list 癩 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 癩?
癩 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 癞, used in mainland China and Singapore.
What does 癩皮狗 mean?
癩皮狗 (làipígǒu) literally means a mangy dog. People use it as an insult for a shameless, disgusting person who keeps pestering others.
Is 癩 still used for leprosy today?
Older texts use 癩病 (làibìng) or 麻瘋 for leprosy. Modern medical Chinese usually says 麻風病 (máfēngbìng), and 癩 is more common in everyday words like 癩蛤蟆.