阑 meaning and stroke order
Screen door, railing, fence
How to write 阑, stroke by stroke
12 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 阑
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- railing
- balustrade
- door-screen
- exhausted
- late
How 阑 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Door.
门 gives the meaning and 柬 hints at the sound.
Radical: 门 (gate), shared by 47 characters on this site.
How to remember 阑
阑 is a door 门 (mén) with 柬 (jiǎn) tucked inside. 门 hints at the meaning, a screen or barrier at a doorway, and 柬 hints at the sound. Picture a gate with a low railing blocking the way.
Today 阑 rarely appears alone. You will meet it most in 阑尾 (lánwěi), the appendix, and in literary phrases where it means late or coming to an end. Example: 他的阑尾发炎了。(Tā de lánwěi fāyán le.) His appendix is inflamed.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 阑 with 栏 (lán, railing), which sounds the same. In modern writing, an everyday railing is 栏杆 (lángān) with 栏, not 阑. Also, the part inside 门 is 柬 (jiǎn), not 東/东 (dōng).
Common words with 阑
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 阑尾 | lánwěi | appendix; vermiform appendix (anatomy) |
阑 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 阑
Learning 阑 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 阑
How many strokes are in 阑?
阑 is written with 12 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 阑 mean?
阑 (lán) means screen door, railing, fence. A common word with it is 阑尾 (lánwěi), meaning "appendix; vermiform appendix (anatomy)".
How do you pronounce 阑?
阑 is pronounced lán, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 阑?
The radical of 阑 is 门, which carries the idea of "gate". Dictionaries list 阑 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 阑?
The traditional form of 阑 is 闌. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 阑 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
How do you say appendicitis in Chinese?
Appendicitis is 阑尾炎 (lánwěiyán). It is 阑尾 (appendix) plus 炎 (yán), which means inflammation.
What does 夜阑人静 mean?
夜阑人静 (yè lán rén jìng) means the night is late and everyone is quiet. Here 阑 carries its sense of late or nearly over. It is a literary expression for the deep stillness of late night.