霾 meaning and stroke order
Fog, mist; smoke, smog; dust storm
How to write 霾, stroke by stroke
22 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 霾
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- haze
How 霾 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Rain.
雨 gives the meaning and 貍 hints at the sound.
Radical: 雨 (rain), shared by 42 characters on this site.
How to remember 霾
霾 (mái) has the weather radical 雨 (rain) on top, telling you it is something in the sky. Below sits 貍 (lí, wild cat), which gives the sound, so picture a gray sky so thick a wild cat could hide in it.
In modern Chinese 霾 most often means air pollution haze, especially in the word 雾霾 (wùmái, smog). It also appears in 阴霾 (yīnmái), which can mean gloomy haze or, figuratively, a dark mood. Example: 今天雾霾很严重。(Jīntiān wùmái hěn yánzhòng.) The smog is very bad today.
Common mistake: Learners often read 霾 as lí because of the phonetic part 貍, but the correct reading is mái with a second tone. Also do not confuse it with 埋 (mái, to bury), which sounds the same but has the earth radical 土.
Common words with 霾
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 阴霾 | yīnmái | haze |
霾 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 霾
How many strokes are in 霾?
霾 is written with 22 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 霾 mean?
霾 (mái) means fog, mist; smoke, smog; dust storm. A common word with it is 阴霾 (yīnmái), meaning "haze".
How do you pronounce 霾?
霾 is pronounced mái, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 霾?
The radical of 霾 is 雨, which carries the idea of "rain". Dictionaries list 霾 under this radical.
What is the difference between 雾 and 霾?
雾 (wù) is natural fog made of water droplets, while 霾 (mái) is haze made of dust, smoke, or pollution particles. People often combine them as 雾霾 (wùmái) to talk about smog.
Can 霾 be used on its own in conversation?
It can appear alone in weather reports, for example 有霾 (yǒu mái, there is haze). In everyday speech people usually say 雾霾 (wùmái) instead.