瞑 meaning and stroke order
To close one's eyes
How to write 瞑, 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 瞑
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to close (the eyes)
How 瞑 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. One's eyes 目at night 冥; 冥 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 目 (eye), shared by 100 characters on this site.
How to remember 瞑
瞑 puts an eye 目 next to 冥 (míng), which suggests darkness or night. When your eyes go dark like the night, you have closed them, and 冥 also gives the sound míng.
瞑 is a literary character that mostly appears in fixed expressions rather than everyday speech. The best known is 死不瞑目, said of someone who dies with a grievance and cannot rest in peace. Example: 他说，不查清真相，他死不瞑目。(Tā shuō, bù chá qīng zhēnxiàng, tā sǐ bù míngmù.) He said he could not die in peace without finding out the truth.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 瞑 with 冥 (míng, dark, the underworld) or 暝 (míng, dusk), which share the same sound. Only 瞑 has the eye radical 目 on the left, so use it when the meaning is about closing the eyes.
瞑 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 瞑
How many strokes are in 瞑?
瞑 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 瞑 mean?
瞑 (míng) means to close one's eyes.
How do you pronounce 瞑?
瞑 is pronounced míng, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 瞑?
The radical of 瞑 is 目, which carries the idea of "eye". Dictionaries list 瞑 under this radical.
Is 冥想 (meditation) written with 瞑?
No. Meditation is 冥想 (míngxiǎng), written with 冥, because it means deep or quiet thinking. People sometimes miswrite it as 瞑想 because meditation involves closing the eyes, but 冥想 is the standard form.
How do I say close your eyes in everyday Chinese?
In daily speech people say 闭上眼睛 (bì shàng yǎnjing) or simply 闭眼 (bì yǎn). 瞑 sounds formal or literary, so it is rarely used on its own in conversation.