How to Write 恨 (hèn) — Meaning “to hate”

Picture a heart (忄) that is like a hard root (艮, which looks like a root or stubborn thing). Imagine a heart that cannot let go of anger, like a root stuck in the ground. This stubborn heart is the feeling of hate.

First write the heart radical 忄: dot, dot, then a vertical line. Then write 艮: left-falling stroke, horizontal, vertical, horizontal fold, left-falling, and finally a right-falling stroke (捺). A common mistake is making the left radical too wide — keep the 忄 narrow and the right side wider.

恨 means "to hate" and uses 艮 on the right. 忡 (chōng) means "sad" or "worried" and has 中 (middle) on the right. 忤 (wǔ) means "to disobey" and has 午 (noon) on the right. Visually, the right sides are very different: 艮 has many strokes, 中 is simple, and 午 has a vertical line crossing through.

恨 expresses strong dislike, as in 痛恨 (tòng hèn, to detest). It also appears in 恨不得 (hèn bù dé), meaning "to itch to do something" — this shows an urgent desire, not always negative. In daily speech, 恨 is common but strong, so it is used carefully.

Common words containing 恨 include: 痛恨 (tòng hèn) — hate; detest; 恨不得 (hèn bù dé) — to itch to; 记恨 (jì hèn) — To bear a grudge.