藤 meaning and stroke order
Ivy, creeper
How to write 藤, stroke by stroke
18 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 藤
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- rattan
- cane
- vine
- variant of 藤[teng2]
How 藤 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Plant.
艹 gives the meaning and 滕 hints at the sound.
Radical: 艹 (grass), shared by 421 characters on this site.
How to remember 藤
The grass radical 艹 on top tells you this is a plant, and 滕 (téng) underneath gives the sound. Picture a climbing plant 艹 creeping over the name 滕 téng.
藤 (téng) refers to vines, creepers, and rattan, the tough stems used to make furniture and canes. It often appears in compounds like 藤椅 (téngyǐ, rattan chair) and 常春藤 (chángchūnténg, ivy). Example: 墙上长满了藤。(Qiáng shang zhǎng mǎn le téng.) The wall is covered in vines.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 藤 with 滕 (téng, a surname) or 腾 (téng, to gallop or rise), since all three sound the same. Only 藤 has the grass radical 艹 on top, which signals a plant.
Common words with 藤
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
藤 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 藤
How many strokes are in 藤?
藤 is written with 18 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 藤 mean?
藤 (téng) means ivy, creeper. A common word with it is 藤椅 (téngyǐ), meaning "rattan chair".
How do you pronounce 藤?
藤 is pronounced téng, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 藤?
The radical of 藤 is 艹, which carries the idea of "grass". Dictionaries list 藤 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 藤?
The traditional form of 藤 is 籐. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 藤 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 藤 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 藤 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does the phrase 顺藤摸瓜 mean?
顺藤摸瓜 (shùn téng mō guā) literally means to follow the vine to find the melon. It is used for tracing clues step by step to find the source of something.
Is 常春藤 used for Ivy League universities?
Yes. 常春藤 (chángchūnténg) means ivy, and 常春藤盟校 (chángchūnténg méngxiào) is the common Chinese name for the Ivy League.