Meaning of 美丽
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- beautiful
How to use 美丽
美丽 describes people, places, and scenery, and it sounds a bit more formal or written than 漂亮 (piàoliang). It often appears in descriptions of nature or in speeches. Example: 这里的风景很美丽。(Zhèlǐ de fēngjǐng hěn měilì.) The scenery here is very beautiful.
美 (měi) means beautiful on its own, and 丽 (lì) adds the idea of lovely or elegant, so 美丽 doubles up on beauty. You can picture 丽 as two matching parts side by side, like a pair of nice earrings.
Common mistake: Learners often say 美丽 for everyday objects like clothes or phones, where 漂亮 (piàoliang) or 好看 (hǎokàn) sounds more natural. Also keep the tones clear: měi is third tone and lì is fourth tone, not měilí.
美丽 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.
美 měi · beautiful · 9 strokes
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- 2
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- 9
丽 lì · beautiful · 7 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 美丽.
| 完美 | wánměi | perfect |
| 美好 | měihǎo | beautiful; fine |
| 美元 | měiyuán | American dollar; US dollar |
| 美食 | měishí | culinary delicacy; fine food |
| 美术 | měishù | art; fine arts |
| 美女 | měinǚ | beautiful woman |
| 美金 | měijīn | American dollar; US dollar |
| 优美 | yōuměi | graceful; fine |
| 美容 | měiróng | to improve one's appearance (using cosmetics or cosmetic surgery); to make oneself more at |
| 精美 | jīngměi | exquisite; elegant; fine |
| 美妙 | měimiào | beautiful; wonderful |
| 美味 | měiwèi | delicious; delicious food |
Questions about 美丽
What does 美丽 mean?
美丽 (měilì) means "beautiful" and is used as a adjective.
How do you write 美丽?
美丽 is made of 2 characters: 美 (9 strokes), 丽 (7 strokes). That is 16 strokes in total.
Is 美丽 an HSK word?
Yes. 美丽 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 美丽 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 美丽 is written 美麗.
What is the difference between 美丽 and 漂亮?
Both mean beautiful, but 漂亮 is more casual and common in speech, and it works for people, clothes, and things. 美丽 feels more literary and is often used for scenery, cities, or a person's beauty in a more elevated way.
Why does 美 also appear in words about America?
美 is used as the short name for the United States, as in 美国 (Měiguó) and 美元 (měiyuán). In those words it refers to the country, not to beauty.