Meaning of 泪
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- (bound form) tears; teardrops
How to use 泪
泪 is a bound form, so it usually appears inside words like 眼泪 (yǎnlèi) or 泪水 (lèishuǐ) rather than standing alone. In speech, 眼泪 is the most common way to say tears. Example: 她流下了眼泪。(Tā liú xià le yǎnlèi.) She shed tears.
泪 is made of 氵 (water) next to 目 (eye). Water coming from the eye is a tear.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes say 泪 by itself to mean tears, but in everyday speech you need 眼泪 or 泪水. Also do not confuse lèi with 累 (lèi, tired), which has the same sound and tone but a different meaning.
泪 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
泪 lèi · tears · 8 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 泪.
Questions about 泪
What does 泪 mean?
泪 (lèi) means "(bound form) tears; teardrops" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 泪?
泪 is made of 1 character: 泪 (8 strokes). That is 8 strokes in total.
Is 泪 an HSK word?
Yes. 泪 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 泪 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 泪 is written 淚.
What is the difference between 眼泪 and 泪水?
Both mean tears. 眼泪 (yǎnlèi) is the everyday spoken word, while 泪水 (lèishuǐ) sounds a bit more literary and is common in writing.
How do I say someone cried or shed tears using 泪?
Use 流泪 (liúlèi) or 落泪 (luòlèi), both meaning to shed tears. 落泪 sounds slightly more formal, as in 他感动得落泪了 (tā gǎndòng de luòlèi le), he was moved to tears.