How to Write 恋 (liàn) — Meaning “To love; to feel attached to”

Imagine that love is not just one feeling but "also" (亦) comes from the "heart" (心) — so 恋 means you love someone with your heart and more. You can also picture a heart saying "also" to remind yourself that love involves many emotions.

Write the top part 亦 first with narrow proportions: dot, horizontal stroke, left-falling stroke, vertical hook, then left-falling and right-falling strokes. For the bottom 心, start with the left dot, then the curved hook, then the middle dot, and finally the right dot — make sure the heart is centered and not too large.

The top part of 恋 is 亦 (also), while 忝 (tiǎn) has a top that looks like 天 (sky) and means "to disgrace," and 忞 (mǐn) has a top like 文 (writing, culture) and means "diligent" or "effort." So the key visual clue is the top component: 亦 for love, 天-like for shame, and 文 for effort.

恋 appears in common words like 恋爱 (romantic love), 留恋 (reluctant to leave), and 失恋 (to break up). In Chinese culture, 初恋 (first love) is a nostalgic and important concept, and 恋 often carries a gentle, emotional tone compared to the stronger word 爱.

Common words containing 恋 include: 恋爱 (liàn ài) — To be in love; romantic love; 留恋 (liú liàn) — To be reluctant to leave or to miss; 失恋 (shī liàn) — to break up / to be lovelorn.