离 meaning and stroke order
To leave; to part from; to be away from
How to write 离, stroke by stroke
10 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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- 10
Meaning of 离
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to leave
- to part from
- to be away from
- (in giving distances) from
- without (sth)
- independent of
- mythical beast (archaic)
How 离 is built
Pictographic character. An animal standing straight; 亠 is the head.
Radical: 禸 (rump), shared by 6 characters on this site.
How to remember 离
Picture an animal standing upright: 亠 is its head, 凶 (xiōng, fierce) is its body, and 禸 is its tracks at the bottom. A fierce beast leaves tracks as it walks away, so 离 (lí) means to leave.
离 is used for leaving a place or person, as in 离开 (líkāi), and very often for distance between two points, with the pattern A 离 B + 远/近. Example: 我家离学校很近。(Wǒ jiā lí xuéxiào hěn jìn.) My home is close to the school.
Common mistake: Learners often use 从 (cóng) for distance and say 我家从学校很近, but distance between places needs 离. Use 从 for a starting point, as in 从北京来 (cóng Běijīng lái), and 离 for how far apart two things are.
Common words with 离
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 离开 | líkāi | to depart; to leave | HSK 2 |
| 离婚 | líhūn | to divorce | HSK 3 |
| 距离 | jùlí | distance; separation (in space or time); to be ... away from; to be ... from | HSK 4 |
| 离不开 | lí bu kāi | inseparable; inevitably linked to | HSK 4 |
| 脱离 | tuōlí | to separate oneself from; to break away from | HSK 5 |
| 分离 | fēnlí | to separate | HSK 5 |
| 远离 | yuǎnlí | to be far from; to keep away from | HSK 6 |
| 撤离 | chèlí | to withdraw from; to evacuate | HSK 6 |
| 隔离 | gélí | to separate; to isolate | HSK 7-9 |
| 离奇 | líqí | odd; bizarre | HSK 7-9 |
| 离职 | lízhí | to leave one's job temporarily (e.g. for study); to leave one's job; to resign | HSK 7-9 |
| 形影不离 | xíngyǐng-bùlí | inseparable (as form and shadow) | HSK 7-9 |
| 离谱儿 | lípǔr | erhua form of 離譜|离谱[li2 pu3] | HSK 7-9 |
| 悲欢离合 | bēihuān-líhé | joys and sorrows; partings and reunions | HSK 7-9 |
离 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 离
Learning 离 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 离
How many strokes are in 离?
离 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 离 mean?
离 (lí) means to leave; to part from; to be away from. A common word with it is 离开 (líkāi), meaning "to depart; to leave".
How do you pronounce 离?
离 is pronounced lí, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 离?
The radical of 离 is 禸, which carries the idea of "rump". Dictionaries list 离 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 离?
The traditional form of 离 is 離. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 离 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 离 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 离 is part of the HSK 2 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 2.
What is the difference between 离 and 离开?
In the distance pattern you use 离 alone, as in 离这儿很远 (lí zhèr hěn yuǎn). For the action of leaving, spoken Chinese usually uses 离开, as in 他离开了北京 (tā líkāi le Běijīng).
Can 离 be used for time as well as space?
Yes. You can say 离春节还有三天 (lí Chūnjié hái yǒu sān tiān), meaning there are three days left until Spring Festival. The same A 离 B pattern measures the gap in time.