鼕 meaning and stroke order
The sound of drums
How to write 鼕, 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 鼕
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (onom.) beating a drum
- rat-a-tat
How 鼕 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Drum.
鼓 gives the meaning and 冬 hints at the sound.
Radical: 鼓 (drum), shared by 4 characters on this site.
How to remember 鼕
A drum 鼓 (gǔ) sits on top of 冬 (dōng), which gives the sound. Picture a drum going dōng dōng, and the bottom part tells you how to say it.
鼕 is an onomatopoeia for the deep beat of a drum, usually doubled as 鼕鼕. Today it is mostly seen in traditional or older texts. In everyday simplified Chinese people write 咚 (dōng) instead. Example: 鼓声鼕鼕 (gǔ shēng dōng dōng), the drums go boom boom.
Common mistake: Learners often write 冬 (dōng, winter) alone when they mean the drum sound. 冬 is only the sound part, and it does not mean drumming by itself. Also keep the first tone. Do not read it as dǒng or dòng.
Questions about 鼕
How many strokes are in 鼕?
鼕 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 鼕 mean?
鼕 (dōng) means the sound of drums.
How do you pronounce 鼕?
鼕 is pronounced dōng, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 鼕?
The radical of 鼕 is 鼓, which carries the idea of "drum". Dictionaries list 鼕 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 鼕?
鼕 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 冬, used in mainland China and Singapore.
What is the difference between 鼕 and 咚?
Both are read dōng and imitate a thudding sound. 鼕 is specifically about drums and feels older or more literary. 咚 is the common modern choice for any knock, thump, or drumbeat.
Is 鼕 used in names or set phrases?
You mostly meet it in the reduplicated form 鼕鼕 describing drumbeats, for example in poems or classical stories. It is rare in daily writing, so learners mainly need to recognize it when reading.