Hanzi Writer

How to Write 曩 (nǎng) — Meaning “past / former times”

nǎng 21 strokes Radical: 日

曩 (nǎng) means "past / former times" in Chinese. It has 21 strokes with the radical 日.

Rated 4.2/5 in difficulty (advanced).

Appears in 3+ common words including 曩日 (nǎng rì), 曩昔 (nǎng xī), 曩时 (nǎng shí).

Due to its 21 strokes, Hanzi Writer's error detection shows 曩 requires focused practice — most learners need 10+ attempts for consistent accuracy.

Stroke order practice for 曩 - nǎng

Practice Writing 曩 (nǎng)

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

App Store ▶ Google Play

How to Write 曩

The character 曩 (nǎng) is written with 21 strokes. Follow the standard Chinese stroke order: top to bottom, left to right, outside before inside. The radical 日 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 nǎng (曩) Mean in Chinese?

曩 means past / former times.

Character Data

Character曩
Pinyinnǎng (nang)
Meaningpast / former times
Strokes21
Radical日
Difficulty4.2/5

Origin of 曩

曩 is a phonetic-semantic compound combining the sun radical 日 (indicating time) with 襄 (xiāng) as a phonetic component. The sun radical roots the character in the concept of days or time, and the whole character came to mean 'past' or 'former times.'

💡 Memory Tip: Picture the sun (日) wrapped in layers of old, dusty cloth (襄) to represent the distant past.

Common Words with 曩

曩日 nǎng rì
former days / in the past
曩昔 nǎng xī
in the past / olden days
曩时 nǎng shí
former times / in the past

Example Sentences

曩日的朋友再见。

nǎng rì de péng yǒu zài jiàn

Seeing friends from the past again.

曩昔的事情忘了。

nǎng xī de shì qíng wàng le

I've forgotten things from the past.

曩时这里很安静。

nǎng shí zhè lǐ hěn ān jìng

It used to be very quiet here.

Similar Characters Comparison

Character Pinyin Strokes Radical
曩 (current) nǎng 21 日
曝 bào / pù 19 日
曦 xī 20 日
Stroke order practice for 曩 - nǎng

Practice Writing 曩 (nǎng)

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

✨ Animated stroke order · Handwriting recognition · HSK-graded practice · Free to use

App Store ▶ Google Play

Frequently Asked Questions about 曩

曩 has the radical 日 (sun/day) on top, which connects it to time. The lower part is a phonetic component that gives the pronunciation nǎng. Together, they form a character meaning 'past' or 'former times'.

Characters with Radical 日

日rì旦dàn旧jiù旨zhǐ早zǎo旭xù旮gā旯lá旰gàn旱hàn

Other 21-Stroke Characters

亹wěi夔kuí灏hào爝jué癫diān礴bó禳ráng籑zhuàn羼chàn蘘ráng