鞭 meaning and stroke order
Whip; to lash, to flog
How to write 鞭, 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.
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Meaning of 鞭
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- whip or lash
- to flog
- to whip
- conductor's baton
- segmented iron weapon (old)
- penis (of animal, served as food)
How 鞭 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character.
革 gives the meaning and 便 hints at the sound.
Radical: 革 (leather), shared by 25 characters on this site.
How to remember 鞭
A whip is made of leather, so 鞭 has 革 (gé, leather) on the left. The right side 便 (biàn) gives the sound, so think of a leather strap that makes a whip go "biān".
On its own 鞭 is rare in speech. You usually meet it in words like 鞭子 (biānzi, whip), 鞭炮 (biānpào, firecrackers) and the figurative 鞭策 (biāncè, to spur on). Example: 过年的时候大家放鞭炮。(Guònián de shíhou dàjiā fàng biānpào.) People set off firecrackers at New Year.
Common mistake: Learners often read 鞭 as biàn or pián because of the phonetic 便, but it is first tone biān. Also do not write the left side as 车 or 革 squeezed wrong; it is the full leather radical 革.
Common words with 鞭
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
鞭 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 鞭
How many strokes are in 鞭?
鞭 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 鞭 mean?
鞭 (biān) means whip; to lash, to flog. A common word with it is 鞭炮 (biānpào), meaning "firecrackers; string of small firecrackers".
How do you pronounce 鞭?
鞭 is pronounced biān, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 鞭?
The radical of 鞭 is 革, which carries the idea of "leather". Dictionaries list 鞭 under this radical.
Is 鞭 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 鞭 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why does 鞭炮 mean firecrackers if 鞭 means whip?
A long string of small firecrackers looks like a whip, and the cracking noise sounds like a whip being lashed. So the word 鞭炮 combines 鞭 (whip) with 炮 (pào, firecracker).
Why do some menus list 鞭 as a dish?
In food contexts 鞭 can refer to an animal's penis, such as 牛鞭 (niúbiān, ox penis), which is served in some regional cuisines. It is a specialized use, so read the context carefully.