談 meaning and stroke order
To talk, to chat; conversation; surname
How to write 談, stroke by stroke
15 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 談
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to speak
- to talk
- to converse
- to chat
- to discuss
How 談 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Speech.
言 gives the meaning and 炎 hints at the sound.
Radical: 言 (words), shared by 155 characters on this site.
How to remember 談
談 is pictophonetic: 言 (yán, speech) on the left gives the meaning, and 炎 (yán, flame) on the right gives the sound. Picture words flying out of a mouth beside a fire, people chatting around a warm flame.
談 (simplified 谈) means to talk or discuss, and it usually appears in compounds such as 谈话 (tánhuà, to have a conversation), 谈判 (tánpàn, to negotiate), and 谈论 (tánlùn, to discuss). It often sounds a bit more serious than 聊 (liáo, to chat). Example: 我们谈谈这个问题。(Wǒmen tántan zhège wèntí.) Let's talk about this problem.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes write the right side as a single 火 or misread it as 淡 (dàn, bland), which has the water radical 氵 instead of 言. Also note the tone: 談 is second tone tán, while the phonetic 炎 is read yán.
Common words with 談
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 談話 | tánhuà | to talk (with sb); to have a conversation | HSK 3 |
| 談判 | tánpàn | to negotiate; negotiation | HSK 3 |
| 會談 | huìtán | talks; discussions | HSK 5 |
| 座談會 | zuòtánhuì | conference; symposium | HSK 6 |
| 談論 | tánlùn | to discuss; to talk about | HSK 7-9 |
| 交談 | jiāotán | to discuss; to converse; chat; discussion | HSK 7-9 |
| 談到 | tándào | to refer to; to speak about | HSK 7-9 |
| 談起 | tánqǐ | to mention; to speak of | HSK 7-9 |
| 訪談 | fǎngtán | to visit and discuss; to interview | HSK 7-9 |
| 談不上 | tán bu shàng | to be out of the question | HSK 7-9 |
| 洽談 | qiàtán | to discuss | HSK 7-9 |
| 誇誇其談 | kuākuā-qítán | (idiom) to talk big; to sound off; to be full of hot air | HSK 7-9 |
| 暢談 | chàngtán | to talk freely; to discuss without inhibition | HSK 7-9 |
| 座談 | zuòtán | to have an informal discussion | HSK 7-9 |
Questions about 談
How many strokes are in 談?
談 is written with 15 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 談 mean?
談 (tán) means to talk, to chat; conversation; surname. A common word with it is 谈话 (tánhuà), meaning "to talk (with sb); to have a conversation".
How do you pronounce 談?
談 is pronounced tán, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 談?
The radical of 談 is 言, which carries the idea of "words". Dictionaries list 談 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 談?
談 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 谈, used in mainland China and Singapore.
What is the difference between 谈 (tán) and 说 (shuō)?
说 is the general word for saying or speaking. 谈 focuses on talking about a topic with someone, often in a discussion or exchange, as in 谈恋爱 (tán liàn'ài, to be in a relationship) or 谈生意 (tán shēngyì, to talk business).
What does 谈到 (tándào) mean and how is it used?
谈到 means to mention or bring up a topic while talking. For example, 他谈到了他的家乡。(Tā tándào le tā de jiāxiāng.) He talked about his hometown.