How to Write 婵 (chán) — Meaning “Beautiful and graceful.”

Imagine a single (单) woman (女) whose beauty is so graceful it lights up the night like the moon. This connects to the word 婵娟, which means 'the moon' or 'a beautiful woman'. The image of a lovely woman alone under the moonlight will help you recall the character.

Pay attention to the right side 单: start with a dot on top, then a left-falling stroke, a horizontal line, a vertical line, and a bottom horizontal. The left radical 女 is narrow, and the right side is wider. A common mistake is making the two dots at the top of 单 too close together—keep them clearly separated.

婵 has the right side 单, which looks like a tall shape with a vertical line through a horizontal bar. 姘 uses 并 (parallel) on the right, with two horizontal lines crossing two verticals, and has a negative meaning. 姚 uses 兆 (omen) on the right, with a dot and a cross-like pattern, and is mainly a surname.

婵 is not common in everyday conversation but appears in poetic and historical contexts. The most famous use is in 婵娟 (chán juān), meaning 'the moon' or 'a beautiful woman', as in the line "千里共婵娟 (share the moonlight across a thousand miles)". It also appears in the name 貂婵 (Diāo Chán), one of the Four Great Beauties of ancient China.

Common words containing 婵 include: 婵娟 (chán juān) — The moon; a beautiful woman.; 貂婵 (diāo chán) — Diaochan (famous ancient beauty); 婵媛 (chán yuán) — Graceful and beautiful..