離 meaning and stroke order
Rare beast; strange; elegant
How to write 離, stroke by stroke
18 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
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- 9
- 10
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- 18
Meaning of 離
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to leave
- to part from
- to be away from
- (in giving distances) from
- without (sth)
- independent of
How 離 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Bird.
隹 gives the meaning and 离 hints at the sound.
Radical: 隹 (short-tailed bird), shared by 32 characters on this site.
How to remember 離
離 combines 离 (lí), which gives the sound, with 隹, the bird component. Picture a bird flying off to leave its nest, and you have the meaning "to leave" with the sound lí.
離 is the traditional form of 离, used in Taiwan and Hong Kong. It means to leave or part from, and it also gives distances: A 離 B 很近 means A is close to B. Example: 我家離學校很遠。(Wǒ jiā lí xuéxiào hěn yuǎn.) My home is far from school.
Common mistake: Learners often use 從 (cóng) for distance and say 我家從學校很遠, but distance between two places takes 離, while 從 marks a starting point of movement. Also do not confuse 離 with 難 (nán, difficult), which has the same 隹 on the right but a different left side.
Common words with 離
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 離開 | líkāi | to depart; to leave | HSK 2 |
| 離婚 | líhūn | to divorce | HSK 3 |
| 距離 | jùlí | distance; separation (in space or time); to be ... away from; to be ... from | HSK 4 |
| 離不開 | lí bu kāi | inseparable; inevitably linked to | HSK 4 |
| 脫離 | tuōlí | to separate oneself from; to break away from | HSK 5 |
| 分離 | fēnlí | to separate | HSK 5 |
| 遠離 | yuǎnlí | to be far from; to keep away from | HSK 6 |
| 撤離 | chèlí | to withdraw from; to evacuate | HSK 6 |
| 隔離 | gélí | to separate; to isolate | HSK 7-9 |
| 離奇 | líqí | odd; bizarre | HSK 7-9 |
| 離職 | lízhí | to leave one's job temporarily (e.g. for study); to leave one's job; to resign | HSK 7-9 |
| 形影不離 | xíngyǐng-bùlí | inseparable (as form and shadow) | HSK 7-9 |
| 離譜兒 | lípǔr | erhua form of 離譜|离谱[li2 pu3] | HSK 7-9 |
| 悲歡離合 | bēihuān-líhé | joys and sorrows; partings and reunions | HSK 7-9 |
Questions about 離
How many strokes are in 離?
離 is written with 18 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 離 mean?
離 (lí) means rare beast; strange; elegant. A common word with it is 离开 (líkāi), meaning "to depart; to leave".
How do you pronounce 離?
離 is pronounced lí, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 離?
The radical of 離 is 隹, which carries the idea of "short-tailed bird". Dictionaries list 離 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 離?
離 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 离, used in mainland China and Singapore.
What is the difference between 離 and 离?
They are the same word with the same meaning and pronunciation. 離 is the traditional form, and 离 is the simplified form used in mainland China. Interestingly, 离 is also the phonetic part inside 離.
How do I use 離 to talk about time?
離 can measure how far away an event is in time. For example, 離春節還有三天 (lí Chūnjié hái yǒu sān tiān) means there are still three days until Spring Festival.