How to Write 暇 (xiá) — Meaning “Leisure / Free time”

Imagine the sun (日) shining on a person sitting on a suitcase (叚 looks like a suitcase), enjoying leisure time. This visual helps you remember that 暇 means free time or leisure.

Pay attention to stroke order: write the left radical 日 first (4 strokes), then the right part 叚 (9 strokes). The right part has a horizontal stroke at the top, then a short vertical, and finally 又 at the bottom; make sure the bottom is not confused with 攵.

暇 (leisure) has the right side 叚, while 晗 (dawn) has 含 on the right, and 㬎 (ancient word for 'display') has two suns stacked. Visual difference: 暇 uses 日 + 叚, 晗 uses 日 + 含, and 㬎 uses 日 + 日. In usage, 暇 is common in words like 闲暇, but 晗 is rare and mostly used in names.

暇 appears in words like 闲暇 (leisure time), 无暇 (too busy to have time), and the idiom 应接不暇 (too busy to handle everything). It is often used in formal or written contexts to describe free time or busyness, and reflects traditional Chinese value of balancing work with rest.

Common words containing 暇 include: 闲暇 (xián xiá) — leisure / free time; 无暇 (wú xiá) — To have no time / too busy; 应接不暇 (yìng jiē bù xiá) — too busy to attend to everything; overwhelmed.