諜 meaning and stroke order
To spy; an intelligence report
How to write 諜, stroke by stroke
16 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 諜
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to spy
How 諜 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Speech.
言 gives the meaning and 枼 hints at the sound.
Radical: 言 (words), shared by 155 characters on this site.
How to remember 諜
諜 is built from 言 (speech) on the left and 枼 on the right, which gives the sound. Picture a spy whose job is words: listening in on speech and passing on secret reports.
諜 rarely stands alone in modern Chinese and mostly appears in words like 间谍 (jiàndié, spy) and 反间谍 (fǎnjiàndié, counterintelligence). Example: 他被怀疑是间谍。(Tā bèi huáiyí shì jiàndié.) He is suspected of being a spy.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 諜 with 喋 (dié, as in 喋喋不休) and 碟 (dié, dish), which share the same 枼 sound part and the same pronunciation. Only the 言 speech version means spying.
Common words with 諜
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 間諜 | jiàndié | spy | HSK 7-9 |
| 反間諜 | fǎnjiàndié | counterintelligence; protection against espionage | |
| 間諜活動 | jiàndiéhuódòng | espionage; spying |
Questions about 諜
How many strokes are in 諜?
諜 is written with 16 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 諜 mean?
諜 (dié) means to spy; an intelligence report. A common word with it is 间谍 (jiàndié), meaning "spy".
How do you pronounce 諜?
諜 is pronounced dié, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 諜?
The radical of 諜 is 言, which carries the idea of "words". Dictionaries list 諜 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 諜?
諜 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 谍, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Why do I see 谍 instead of 諜 in most Chinese texts?
谍 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore. 諜 is the traditional form used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. They mean the same thing.
What is the difference between 间谍 and 特务?
间谍 (jiàndié) is the general word for a spy who gathers secret information, often for a foreign country. 特务 (tèwu) means a secret agent and often has a negative tone, especially in historical or political contexts.