纬 meaning and stroke order
Warp and woof; lines of latitude
How to write 纬, stroke by stroke
7 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
Meaning of 纬
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- latitude
- woof (horizontal thread in weaving)
- weft
How 纬 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Thread.
纟 gives the meaning and 韦 hints at the sound.
Radical: 纟 (silk), shared by 143 characters on this site.
How to remember 纬
纬 combines the silk radical 纟 (thread) with 韦 (wéi), which gives the sound. Picture threads running side to side across a loom, just like latitude lines circle the globe horizontally.
纬 appears mostly in compounds about weaving or geography, such as 纬度 (wěidù, latitude) and 北纬 (běiwěi, north latitude). Example: 北京位于北纬四十度左右。(Běijīng wèiyú běiwěi sìshí dù zuǒyòu.) Beijing is located at about 40 degrees north latitude.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 纬 (wěi, latitude) with 经 (jīng, longitude), since both use the 纟 radical and often appear together. Also, do not confuse 纬 with 伟 (wěi, great), which sounds the same but uses the person radical 亻.
Common words with 纬
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 纬度 | wěidù | latitude | HSK 7-9 |
| 北纬 | běiwěi | north latitude |
Questions about 纬
How many strokes are in 纬?
纬 is written with 7 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 纬 mean?
纬 (wěi) means warp and woof; lines of latitude. A common word with it is 纬度 (wěidù), meaning "latitude".
How do you pronounce 纬?
纬 is pronounced wěi, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 纬?
The radical of 纬 is 纟, which carries the idea of "silk". Dictionaries list 纬 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 纬?
The traditional form of 纬 is 緯. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 纬 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 纬 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 纬 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 经纬 mean?
经纬 (jīngwěi) literally means the warp and weft threads of cloth, or longitude and latitude on a map. By extension it can mean the overall framework or order of something.
Is 纬 the same as the weft in weaving?
Yes. In weaving, 纬 is the horizontal thread, the weft or woof, while 经 is the vertical warp thread. The geographic meaning of latitude comes from this horizontal image.