How to Write 含 (hán) — Meaning “to contain, to hold in the mouth”

Picture a person saying "今" (now) with something inside their mouth (口) — they cannot speak clearly because their mouth is full. This image links the top part 今 (now) with the bottom mouth radical 口, making you think of "containing" or "holding" something.

The top part 今 is written with a downward stroke (丿) followed by a dot (丶), then a horizontal stroke (一) and a curved hook (乛). A common mistake is to write the top like 令 (lìng) instead of 今 — note that 含 uses 今, not 令, so do not add a dot under the final stroke. Make sure the mouth radical 口 is centered below and slightly wider than the top.

含 (hán) means "to contain" and has 今 on top with 口 below. 卟 (bǔ) is a rare character meaning "to divine" and has 口 on the left and 卜 on the right. 古 (gǔ) means "ancient" and is simply the cross shape 十 over 口 — it has no top component like 今. Visually, 含 is taller with a clear two-part structure, while 古 is more compact.

含 is common in words like 包含 (bāohán, to include) and 含有 (hányǒu, to contain), often used for abstract or physical contents. For example, “这个盒子含有礼物” means "This box contains a gift." A cultural note: 含义 (hányì) means "implication" and is used in discussions about hidden meanings in language or texts.

Common words containing 含 include: 包含 (bāo hán) — to contain; to include; 含义 (hán yì) — meaning, implication; 含有 (hán yǒu) — to contain, to include.