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How to Write 怜 (lián) — Meaning “to pity; to love”

lián HSK Level 5 8 strokes Radical: 忄

怜 (lián) means "to pity; to love" in Chinese. It has 8 strokes with the radical 忄, and is HSK Level 5.

Rated 3.7/5 in difficulty (challenging).

Harder than 34% of HSK Level 5 characters.

Appears in 3+ common words including 可怜 (kě lián), 怜惜 (lián xī), 怜悯 (lián mǐn).

Due to its 8 strokes, Hanzi Writer's error detection shows 怜 requires focused practice — most learners need 10+ attempts for consistent accuracy.

Stroke order practice for 怜 - lián

Practice Writing 怜 (lián)

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How to Write 怜

The character 怜 (lián) is written with 8 strokes. Follow the standard Chinese stroke order: top to bottom, left to right, outside before inside. The radical 忄 is one of its key components.

Practice the correct stroke order with the Hanzi Writer app to see animated stroke-by-stroke guidance with real-time feedback.

What Does lián (怜) Mean in Chinese?

怜 means to pity; to love.

As an HSK Level 5 character, 怜 is an intermediate-level character.

Character Data

Character怜
Pinyinlián (lian)
Meaningto pity; to love
Strokes8
Radical忄
HSK Level5
Difficulty3.7/5

Origin of 怜

The character 怜 combines the heart radical 忄 (xīn), indicating emotion, with 令 (lìng, meaning 'order' or 'command'). Together, they suggest a heart moved to pity or tenderness by a command or situation, though the right component primarily provides phonetic cues.

💡 Memory Tip: Imagine a heart (忄) that hears a command (令) to feel pity, like ordering your heart to love someone in distress.

Common Words with 怜

可怜 kě lián
pitiful; poor
怜惜 lián xī
to take pity on; to cherish
怜悯 lián mǐn
pity; compassion; mercy

Example Sentences

这只小猫真可怜。

zhè zhǐ xiǎo māo zhēn kě lián

This kitten is so pitiful.

他很怜惜这些花。

tā hěn lián xī zhè xiē huā

He cherishes these flowers.

我们要怜悯弱者。

wǒ men yào lián mǐn ruò zhě

We should pity the weak.

Similar Characters Comparison

Character Pinyin Strokes Radical
怜 (current) lián 8 忄
忏 chàn 6 忄
忕 shì 6 忄
忖 cǔn 6 忄
Stroke order practice for 怜 - lián

Practice Writing 怜 (lián)

Open Hanzi Writer to see the animated stroke order and practice writing 怜 with real-time feedback.

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Frequently Asked Questions about 怜

怜 has the heart radical 忄 on the left, which connects to emotions like pity or love. The right side is 令 (lìng, meaning "order" or "cause"), suggesting that pity arises when something causes an emotional response from the heart.

More HSK Level 5 Characters

慰wèi岸àn摩mó拔bá拜bài版bǎn扮bàn棒bàng怨yuàn悲bēi辈bèi鼻bí彼bǐ幕mù辑jí宾bīn饼bǐng毒dú玻bō璃lí

Characters with Radical 忄

忆yì忉dāo忏chàn忕shì忖cǔn忙máng忡chōng忤wǔ忧yōu忪sōng/zhōng

Other 8-Stroke Characters

㐭lǐn丧sāng/sàng乖guāi乳rǔ乶fǔ事shì些xiē亟jí享xiǎng京jīng