How to Write 憾 (hàn) — Meaning “regret”

Think of "han" as "Hands over heart" — the left side 忄 is a heart, and the right side 感 looks like someone covering their chest with a feeling. Imagine feeling regret so strongly that you press your hand to your heart and sigh "Han..." This links the sound and shape to the meaning.

Pay attention to the left side 忄: the vertical stroke should be straight, and the two dots are placed close to the middle. The right side 感 has many strokes — write the 戈 component (dagger-axe) fully before adding the bottom 心 (heart). Common mistakes include making the left side too wide or forgetting the bottom heart shape.

憾 means "regret" and uses the heart radical, while 慢 (màn) means "slow" and has the same left radical but a different right side — 曼 instead of 感. 慴 (shè) means "fear" and uses the heart radical with 習 on the right; it is extremely rare. Visually, 憾 and 慢 look similar but have different right components and completely different meanings.

憾 commonly appears in the word 遗憾 (yíhàn), meaning "regret" or "pity," such as in expressions like "真遗憾" (What a pity!). It is also used in formal or literary contexts like 憾事 (a regrettable matter) and 缺憾 (a flaw or shortcoming). Unlike everyday words like 后悔 (hòuhuǐ, to regret), 憾 carries a deeper, more profound sense of lasting regret.

Common words containing 憾 include: 遗憾 (yí hàn) — Regret; pity; 憾事 (hàn shì) — a matter for regret; 缺憾 (quē hàn) — regret / flaw.