膜 meaning and stroke order
Membrane; film
How to write 膜, 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 膜
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- membrane
- film
How 膜 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Flesh.
⺼ gives the meaning and 莫 hints at the sound.
Radical: ⺼ (meat), shared by 176 characters on this site.
How to remember 膜
The flesh radical ⺼ on the left tells you this is about the body, and 莫 (mò) on the right gives the sound. Picture a thin layer of flesh, like the skin on a drum, and you have 膜 (mó), a membrane or film.
膜 (mó) usually appears in compound words for thin layers, from body parts like 视网膜 (shìwǎngmó, retina) to everyday items like 面膜 (miànmó, facial mask) or 保鲜膜 (bǎoxiānmó, plastic wrap). It also appears in the formal word 膜拜 (móbài, to worship). Example: 我晚上敷了一张面膜。(Wǒ wǎnshang fū le yì zhāng miànmó.) I put on a face mask tonight.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 膜 (mó) with 模 (mó, model, pattern) and 摸 (mō, to touch), which share the same 莫 part. Check the left side: flesh ⺼ for membrane, wood 木 for model, hand 扌 for touch, and note that 摸 is first tone.
Common words with 膜
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 视网膜 | shìwǎngmó | retina | |
| 面膜 | miànmó | facial mask; cleanser | |
| 膜拜 | móbài | to kneel and bow with joined hands at forehead level; to worship | |
| 虹膜 | hóngmó | iris (of an eye) |
膜 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 膜
How many strokes are in 膜?
膜 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 膜 mean?
膜 (mó) means membrane; film. A common word with it is 视网膜 (shìwǎngmó), meaning "retina".
How do you pronounce 膜?
膜 is pronounced mó, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 膜?
The radical of 膜 is ⺼, which carries the idea of "meat". Dictionaries list 膜 under this radical.
Is 膜 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 膜 is part of the HSK 6 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 膜拜 mean, and is it still used today?
膜拜 (móbài) originally meant to kneel and bow with hands raised to the forehead, so it means to worship. Today it is also used jokingly online to show huge admiration, like saying you bow down to someone's skill.
How do you say 'put on a face mask' in Chinese?
The usual verb is 敷 (fū), as in 敷面膜 (fū miànmó). You can also say 贴面膜 (tiē miànmó) for sheet masks. Avoid 戴 (dài) here, because 戴口罩 (dài kǒuzhào) is for wearing a medical mask.