蓮 meaning and stroke order
Lotus, water lily; paradise
How to write 蓮, 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 蓮
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- lotus
How 蓮 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Flower.
艹 gives the meaning and 連 hints at the sound.
Radical: 艹 (grass), shared by 421 characters on this site.
How to remember 蓮
The grass radical 艹 on top marks a plant, and 連 (lián, to connect) below gives the sound. Picture lotus plants growing so close on a pond that their leaves connect into one green carpet.
蓮 is the traditional form; in mainland China you will usually see 莲. It appears mostly in compounds like 蓮花 (liánhuā, lotus flower) and 蓮子 (liánzǐ, lotus seed), and is common in Buddhist imagery and in names. Example: 池塘裡開滿了蓮花。(Chítáng lǐ kāi mǎn le liánhuā.) The pond is full of blooming lotus flowers.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes drop the 艹 and write 連 (lián, connect), which has the same sound but a different meaning. Also do not confuse it with 憐 (lián, pity), another lián in traditional script.
Common words with 蓮
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
Questions about 蓮
How many strokes are in 蓮?
蓮 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 蓮 mean?
蓮 (lián) means lotus, water lily; paradise. A common word with it is 莲子 (liánzǐ), meaning "lotus seed".
How do you pronounce 蓮?
蓮 is pronounced lián, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 蓮?
The radical of 蓮 is 艹, which carries the idea of "grass". Dictionaries list 蓮 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 蓮?
蓮 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 莲, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is the lotus 蓮 the same as a water lily?
Strictly, 蓮 refers to the lotus (Nelumbo), whose leaves and flowers rise above the water. In everyday speech 蓮花 is also loosely used for water lilies, which botanists call 睡蓮 (shuìlián).
What is 蓮藕 (lián'ǒu)?
蓮藕 is lotus root, the edible underground stem of the lotus, often just called 藕 (ǒu). It is a common vegetable in soups and stir fries.