Hanzi Writer

How to Write 音 (yīn) — Meaning “sound; tone; music”

yīn HSK Level 2 9 strokes Radical: 音

音 (yīn) means "sound; tone; music" in Chinese. It has 9 strokes with the radical 音, and is HSK Level 2.

Rated 2.8/5 in difficulty (moderate).

Harder than 32% of HSK Level 2 characters.

Appears in 3+ common words including 音乐 (yīn yuè), 声音 (shēng yīn), 发音 (fā yīn).

Hanzi Writer's stroke validation shows learners typically need 5-8 attempts to write 音 with correct proportion and order.

Stroke order practice for 音 - yīn

Practice Writing 音 (yīn)

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

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How to Write 音

The character 音 (yīn) is written with 9 strokes. Follow the standard Chinese stroke order: top to bottom, left to right, outside before inside. The radical 音 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 yīn (音) Mean in Chinese?

音 means sound; tone; music.

As an HSK Level 2 character, 音 is among the first characters beginners learn.

Character Data

Character音
Pinyinyīn (yin)
Meaningsound; tone; music
Strokes9
Radical音
HSK Level2
Difficulty2.8/5

Origin of 音

音 was originally a pictograph that evolved from the character 言 (speech), with an added mark to indicate sound emanating from the mouth. In ancient forms, it depicted a tongue (言) with a dot or line representing vocal sound, symbolizing tone or music. Over time, the shape simplified into 立 (stand) above 日 (sun) in modern script, though its core meaning remains connected to audible sound.

💡 Memory Tip: Imagine the sun (日) standing up (立) to sing a loud sound, filling the sky with music.

Common Words with 音

音乐 yīn yuè
music
声音 shēng yīn
Sound; voice.
发音 fā yīn
pronunciation; to pronounce

Example Sentences

我喜欢听音乐。

wǒ xǐ huān tīng yīn yuè

I like listening to music.

你的声音很好听。

nǐ de shēng yīn hěn hǎo tīng

Your voice sounds very nice.

他的发音很标准。

tā de fā yīn hěn biāo zhǔn

His pronunciation is very standard.

Stroke order practice for 音 - yīn

Practice Writing 音 (yīn)

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

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

App Store ▶ Google Play

Frequently Asked Questions about 音

The character 音 is composed of two parts: the top part 立 (standing) and the bottom part 日 (sun/day). Together, they suggest sound standing under the sun, but historically it represents a tongue (言 variant) and a mouth, indicating sound produced by speech.

More HSK Level 2 Characters

啊a/ā/á/ǎ/à情qíng安ān静jìng全quán色sè/shǎi长cháng/zhǎng办bàn法fǎ公gōng室shì夜yè助zhù饱bǎo报bào纸zhǐ背bēi/bèi如rú笔bǐ必bì

Characters with Radical 音

韵yùn韶sháo

Other 9-Stroke Characters

㒸suì㲋chuò㿽xī临lín举jǔ乹gān/qián亭tíng亮liàng亲qīn/qìng侮wǔ