贪 meaning and stroke order
To have a voracious desire for; to covet; greedy
How to write 贪, stroke by stroke
8 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
Meaning of 贪
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to have a voracious desire for
- to covet
- greedy
- corrupt
How 贪 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Money.
贝 gives the meaning and 今 hints at the sound.
Radical: 贝 (sea shell), shared by 63 characters on this site.
How to remember 贪
贪 is 今 (jīn, now) on top of 贝 (bèi, shell, an old symbol for money). Someone who wants money right now is greedy, and 今 also hints at the sound.
贪 often appears in words about wanting too much, such as 贪心 (tānxīn, greedy) and 贪婪 (tānlán, avaricious), and in 贪污 (tānwū) for official corruption. It can also be light and playful, as in 贪玩 (tānwán, too fond of play). Example: 这个孩子太贪玩了。(Zhège háizi tài tānwán le.) This kid loves playing too much.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 贪 with 贫 (pín, poor), which has 分 on top instead of 今. Remember that the greedy one wants it now (今), while the poor one has had their money divided up (分).
Common words with 贪
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
贪 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 贪
How many strokes are in 贪?
贪 is written with 8 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 贪 mean?
贪 (tān) means to have a voracious desire for; to covet; greedy. A common word with it is 贪婪 (tānlán), meaning "avaricious; greedy".
How do you pronounce 贪?
贪 is pronounced tān, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 贪?
The radical of 贪 is 贝, which carries the idea of "sea shell". Dictionaries list 贪 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 贪?
The traditional form of 贪 is 貪. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 贪 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 贪 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 贪 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Is 贪 always negative?
Mostly, yes. Words like 贪污 and 贪得无厌 are strongly negative. But 贪玩 or 贪吃 (tānchī, loves eating) can be said affectionately about children or friends.
What is the difference between 贪心 and 贪婪?
贪心 is everyday and can describe small greed, like wanting one more piece of cake. 贪婪 is more formal and harsher, used for deep, serious greed in writing or criticism.