蔼 meaning and stroke order
Lush; friendly, affable
How to write 蔼, 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 蔼
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- friendly
How 蔼 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Grass.
艹 gives the meaning and 谒 hints at the sound.
Radical: 艹 (grass), shared by 421 characters on this site.
How to remember 蔼
蔼 (ǎi) is grass 艹 on top of 谒 (yè), which gives the sound. Picture soft, lush grass that makes a place feel gentle and welcoming, like a friendly person.
蔼 almost never appears alone in modern Chinese. You will mostly see it in 和蔼 (hé'ǎi), used to describe a kind, gentle manner, often of older people or teachers. Example: 她的奶奶很和蔼。(Tā de nǎinai hěn hé'ǎi.) Her grandma is very kind.
Common mistake: Learners often read 蔼 as yè because of the phonetic part 谒, but the correct reading is ǎi with a third tone. Also do not confuse it with 霭 (ǎi, mist), which has 雨 on top instead of 艹.
Common words with 蔼
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 和蔼 | hé'ǎi | kindly; nice | HSK 7-9 |
蔼 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 蔼
How many strokes are in 蔼?
蔼 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 蔼 mean?
蔼 (ǎi) means lush; friendly, affable. A common word with it is 和蔼 (hé'ǎi), meaning "kindly; nice".
How do you pronounce 蔼?
蔼 is pronounced ǎi, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 蔼?
The radical of 蔼 is 艹, which carries the idea of "grass". Dictionaries list 蔼 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 蔼?
The traditional form of 蔼 is 藹. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 蔼 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 蔼 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 蔼 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 和蔼 and 友好?
和蔼 describes a warm, gentle attitude, usually from an elder or someone in authority toward others. 友好 (yǒuhǎo) means friendly in a general sense and is often used between equals, groups, or countries.
Can 和蔼 be used to describe young people?
It is possible, but it sounds most natural for older people, teachers, or superiors. For a friendly peer, 友善 (yǒushàn) or 热情 (rèqíng) usually fits better.