铜 meaning and stroke order
Copper (chemistry); see also 紅銅|红铜[hong2 tong2]
How to write 铜, stroke by stroke
11 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
- 9
- 10
- 11
Meaning of 铜
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- copper (chemistry)
- see also 紅銅|红铜[hong2 tong2]
How 铜 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Metal.
钅 gives the meaning and 同 hints at the sound.
Radical: 钅 (gold), shared by 223 characters on this site.
How to remember 铜
铜 combines the metal radical 钅 with 同 (tóng), which gives the sound. Picture a metal that sounds like 同: that is copper.
铜 is used for copper as a metal and appears in many compound words for alloys and objects, such as 青铜 (qīngtóng) bronze and 黄铜 (huángtóng) brass. A common everyday word is 铜牌 (tóngpái), a bronze medal. Example: 他在比赛中拿了铜牌。(Tā zài bǐsài zhōng ná le tóngpái.) He won a bronze medal in the competition.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes write 同 without the metal radical, or confuse 铜 with 洞 (dòng, hole), which has the water radical 氵 and a fourth tone. Remember that 铜 keeps the second tone of 同.
Common words with 铜
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
铜 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 铜
How many strokes are in 铜?
铜 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 铜 mean?
铜 (tóng) means copper (chemistry); see also 紅銅|红铜[hong2 tong2]. A common word with it is 铜牌 (tóngpái), meaning "bronze medal; bronze plaque bearing a business name or logo etc".
How do you pronounce 铜?
铜 is pronounced tóng, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 铜?
The radical of 铜 is 钅, which carries the idea of "gold". Dictionaries list 铜 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 铜?
The traditional form of 铜 is 銅. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 铜 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 铜 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 铜 is part of the HSK 6 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Does 铜 mean copper or bronze?
On its own, 铜 means copper. Bronze is more precisely 青铜 (qīngtóng), but in 铜牌 (tóngpái) the word is translated as bronze medal.
What is the difference between 红铜, 黄铜 and 青铜?
红铜 (hóngtóng) is pure copper, named for its reddish color. 黄铜 (huángtóng) is brass, copper mixed with zinc, and 青铜 (qīngtóng) is bronze, copper mixed with tin.