How to Write 赧 (nǎn) — Meaning “To blush / Ashamed”

Imagine someone blushing so hard that their face turns bright red like the left side 赤 (red), and they feel so ashamed they want to hide in a corner (the right side 辰 resembles a curled-up person). Alternatively, think of the phrase "Nǎn, blushing red" – the left 赤 reminds you of red cheeks, and the sound nǎn matches the character.

Start with the left radical 赤: write the horizontal line, then the vertical, then the two small strokes (left and right) and finally the bottom 小? Actually 赤 is written as 土 with 䒑 on top? Standard stroke order: left radical 赤 (横、竖、横、竖钩、撇、点? Wait, better: 赤 stroke order: horizontal, vertical, horizontal, vertical hook, left-falling, dot. Then the right component 辰: first a horizontal stroke, then a left-falling, then horizontal, horizontal, vertical hook, and two small strokes? Actually 辰 is: 一、丿、一、一、𠃊、𠃋? Common mistake is making the left 赤 too wide or the right 辰 too narrow; keep both sides balanced and ensure the bottom of 辰 has that hook clearly drawn.

赦 (shè) means “to pardon” or “to excuse” and has the radical 攵 (action/strike) on the right, while 赧 has 赤 (red) on the left. Visually, 赦 is written with 赤 on the left? Actually 赦 is 赤 + 攵 (with 赤 on left and 攵 on right), whereas 赧 is 赤 + 辰. So 赦 has a component that looks like a hand holding a stick (攵), while 赧 has 辰 (a phonetic element). Their meanings are completely different—one is about blushing, the other about forgiving.

赧 is quite formal and literary; you will often see it in written expressions like 赧然 (blushing) or 羞赧 (shy and blushing). It is used to describe someone's embarrassed reaction, often in descriptive prose or news reports. For example, a child who gets caught doing something wrong might show a 羞赧 smile—it carries a gentle, slightly poetic tone.

Common words containing 赧 include: 赧然 (nǎn rán) — Blushing / Bashfully; 羞赧 (xiū nǎn) — blushing with shame; shy; 赧颜 (nǎn yán) — Blushing face / Feeling ashamed.