聞 meaning and stroke order
News; to hear, to smell; to make known
How to write 聞, 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 聞
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to hear
- news
- well-known
- famous
- reputation
- fame
How 聞 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Ear.
耳 gives the meaning and 門 hints at the sound.
Radical: 耳 (ear), shared by 34 characters on this site.
How to remember 聞
An ear 耳 (ěr) pressed against a door 門 (mén) is listening to what is going on inside. The ear gives the meaning of hearing, and 門 hints at the sound, since mén and wén rhyme.
In modern Chinese 聞 (simplified 闻) most often appears in words about news and fame, like 新闻 (xīnwén) and 闻名 (wénmíng). In everyday speech, as a verb on its own it usually means to smell, not to hear. Example: 你闻闻这个花。(Nǐ wénwen zhège huā.) Smell this flower.
Common mistake: Learners often use 闻 to mean hear in daily speech, but the normal word for hear is 听 (tīng) or 听到 (tīngdào). Saying 我闻到音乐 sounds wrong; 闻到 (wéndào) is for smells.
Common words with 聞
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 新聞 | xīnwén | news | HSK 2 |
| 傳聞 | chuánwén | rumor | HSK 7-9 |
| 醜聞 | chǒuwén | scandal | HSK 7-9 |
| 聞名 | wénmíng | well-known; famous | HSK 7-9 |
| 緋聞 | fēiwén | sex scandal | HSK 7-9 |
| 駭人聽聞 | hàiréntīngwén | shocking; horrifying | HSK 7-9 |
| 默默無聞 | mòmò-wúwén | (idiom) unknown; unrenowned | HSK 7-9 |
| 耳聞目睹 | ěrwén-mùdǔ | to witness personally | HSK 7-9 |
| 孤陋寡聞 | gūlòu-guǎwén | ignorant and inexperienced; ill-informed and narrow-minded | HSK 7-9 |
| 舉世聞名 | jǔshì-wénmíng | world-famous (idiom) | HSK 7-9 |
| 遠近聞名 | yuǎnjìn-wénmíng | to be known far and wide; to be well-known | HSK 7-9 |
| 聞到 | wéndào | to smell; to sniff sth out | |
| 難聞 | nánwén | unpleasant smell; stink | |
| 聽聞 | tīngwén | to listen; to hear what sb says |
Questions about 聞
How many strokes are in 聞?
聞 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 聞 mean?
聞 (wén) means news; to hear, to smell; to make known. A common word with it is 新闻 (xīnwén), meaning "news".
How do you pronounce 聞?
聞 is pronounced wén, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 聞?
The radical of 聞 is 耳, which carries the idea of "ear". Dictionaries list 聞 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 聞?
聞 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 闻, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Why does 闻 mean smell if it has an ear in it?
Its older meaning was to hear, which is still kept in words like 耳闻目睹 (ěrwén-mùdǔ). Over time the everyday verb shifted to mean to smell, while the hearing sense survives mostly in set phrases and formal words.
What is the difference between 闻名 and 有名?
Both mean famous. 有名 (yǒumíng) is casual and common in speech, while 闻名 (wénmíng) is more formal and often used in patterns like 闻名世界 (wénmíng shìjiè), famous worldwide.