磁 meaning and stroke order
Magnetic; porcelain
How to write 磁, stroke by stroke
14 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 磁
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- magnetic
- magnetism
- porcelain
How 磁 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Stone.
石 gives the meaning and 兹 hints at the sound.
Radical: 石 (stone), shared by 114 characters on this site.
How to remember 磁
磁 combines 石 (stone) on the left with 兹 (zī) on the right, which hints at the sound. Picture a special stone that pulls metal toward it, a lodestone, and you have 磁 (cí), magnetic.
磁 almost always appears in compound words about magnetism, such as 磁铁 (cítiě, magnet), 磁场 (cíchǎng, magnetic field) and 电磁 (diàncí, electromagnetism). Example: 冰箱上贴着一个磁铁。(Bīngxiāng shàng tiēzhe yí gè cítiě.) There is a magnet stuck on the fridge.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 磁 with 慈 (cí, kind) because they share the same sound and the 兹 part. Remember that 磁 has 石 (stone) on the left, while 慈 has 心 (heart) underneath.
Common words with 磁
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 磁带 | cídài | magnetic tape | HSK 7-9 |
| 磁盘 | cípán | (computer) disk | HSK 7-9 |
| 磁卡 | cíkǎ | magnetic card; IC Card (telephone) | HSK 7-9 |
| 磁场 | cíchǎng | magnetic field | |
| 磁铁 | cítiě | magnet | |
| 核磁共振 | hécígòngzhèn | nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) | |
| 电磁 | diàncí | electromagnetism | |
| 磁力 | cílì | magnetic force; magnetic | |
| 电磁脉冲 | diàncímàichōng | electromagnetic pulse (EMP) | |
| 磁性 | cíxìng | magnetic; magnetism | |
| 电磁波 | diàncíbō | electromagnetic wave |
磁 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 磁
How many strokes are in 磁?
磁 is written with 14 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 磁 mean?
磁 (cí) means magnetic; porcelain. A common word with it is 磁带 (cídài), meaning "magnetic tape".
How do you pronounce 磁?
磁 is pronounced cí, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 磁?
The radical of 磁 is 石, which carries the idea of "stone". Dictionaries list 磁 under this radical.
Is 磁 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 磁 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Is 磁 the same as 瓷 for porcelain?
Both are read cí, and 磁 was used for porcelain in older texts. In modern Chinese, porcelain is normally written 瓷, as in 瓷器 (cíqì), so use 磁 for magnetic meanings.
How do you say magnet in Chinese?
The common word is 磁铁 (cítiě), literally magnetic iron. You may also hear 吸铁石 (xītiěshí) in everyday speech, meaning stone that attracts iron.