闷 meaning and stroke order
Stuffy; shut indoors; to smother
How to write 闷, stroke by stroke
7 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
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Meaning of 闷
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- stuffy
- shut indoors
- to smother
- to cover tightly
- bored
- depressed
- melancholy
- sealed
- airtight
- tightly closed
How 闷 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Heart.
心 gives the meaning and 门 hints at the sound.
Radical: 门 (gate), shared by 47 characters on this site.
How to remember 闷
闷 is a heart 心 (xīn) shut inside a door 门 (mén). A heart closed up behind a door feels stuffy, bored, and gloomy, and 门 also gives the sound men.
Read it mēn for physical stuffiness, as in 闷热 (mēnrè, sultry), and mèn for feelings, as in 郁闷 (yùmèn, depressed) or 纳闷 (nàmèn, puzzled). Example: 今天好闷热。(Jīntiān hǎo mēnrè.) It is so hot and stuffy today.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 闷 with 问 (wèn, to ask), which has 口 inside the door instead of 心. Also watch the tone: 闷热 is first tone mēn, while 郁闷 and 闷闷不乐 use fourth tone mèn.
Common words with 闷
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
闷 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 闷
How many strokes are in 闷?
闷 is written with 7 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 闷 mean?
闷 (mēn) means stuffy; shut indoors; to smother. A common word with it is 沉闷 (chénmèn), meaning "oppressive (of weather); heavy".
How do you pronounce 闷?
闷 has more than one reading: mēn and mèn. The most common is mēn, said in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 闷?
The radical of 闷 is 门, which carries the idea of "gate". Dictionaries list 闷 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 闷?
The traditional form of 闷 is 悶. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 闷 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 闷 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 闷 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 郁闷 mean in everyday slang?
Young people say 郁闷 (yùmèn) to mean annoyed, frustrated, or bummed out about something small. For example, 真郁闷 (zhēn yùmèn) is like saying "what a drag."
Does 纳闷 mean sad?
No. 纳闷 (nàmèn) means puzzled or wondering why something happened. 我很纳闷他为什么没来 (Wǒ hěn nàmèn tā wèishénme méi lái) means "I wonder why he didn't come."