儿 Stroke Order — How to Write 儿
儿 is written in 2 strokes, following the standard Chinese stroke order. Start from the radical 儿, then complete the remaining strokes.
Stroke order matters in Chinese: it keeps the character balanced, and it is how dictionaries and handwriting input methods expect a character to be written.
儿 Radical and Character Components
Components:丿乚
儿 is a pictograph. Simplified form of 兒, a picture of a child; compare 人.
Radical: 儿 + 0 more strokes
儿 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- ér
Meanings of 儿 in Chinese
1
ér儿
Child, infant; often used in words like 'yīng'ér' (婴儿 - infant) or 'érxì' (儿戏 - child's play) to denote something related to children or being childish.
她喜欢逗弄婴儿，看着他们笑。
She enjoys playing with infants and watching them laugh.
Young person, especially a young man; son.
男儿当自强。
A man should strive for self-improvement.
Son, boy; offspring. Referring to a male child.
她有一个可爱的儿子。
She has a lovely son.
a child; son or daughter (used by parents referring to their offspring or by children referring to themselves to parents)
我的儿今年上大学了。
My child is going to college this year.
A particle: often used as a suffix for nouns (e.g., to indicate smallness, familiarity, or simply as a stylistic variant) or occasionally after adjectives.
春天来了，公园里的花儿都开了。
Spring has arrived, and all the flowers in the park have bloomed.
Common Words and Phrases with 儿
1
children; offspring; the younger generation
教育儿辈是家庭的重要责任。
Educating the younger generation is an important family responsibility.
2
children; offspring; younger generation
老王看着庭院里嬉戏的儿曹，脸上洋溢着幸福的笑容。
Old Wang looked at his children playing in the courtyard, his face beaming with a happy smile.
3
new teeth grown by some old people after their original teeth fall out
村里的王爷爷年近九旬，身体硬朗，最近竟发现他长出了几颗儿齿，大家都很惊讶。
Grandpa Wang in the village is nearly ninety years old and in robust health; recently, he was found to have grown a few new teeth (sometimes called 'erchi') after his old ones fell out, which surprised everyone.
4
daughter-in-law
婆婆对儿妇的勤劳和孝顺赞不绝口。
The mother-in-law highly praised her daughter-in-law's diligence and filial piety.
5
A children's song or nursery rhyme.
她喜欢在睡前给孩子唱几首温柔的儿歌。
She likes to sing a few gentle children's songs to her child before bedtime.
6
A phonological phenomenon in Mandarin Chinese where a non-syllabic 'r' suffix causes the retroflexion of the preceding vowel.
今儿个天气真好，咱们去公园里玩儿吧。
The weather is really nice today, let's go play in the park.
7
A puppet ruler who is subservient to a foreign power, literally meaning 'boy emperor'.
在那个虚构的商业帝国里，那位被扶植的年轻总裁，虽然名义上掌管一切，实际上只是他幕后操纵者的儿皇帝。
In that fictional business empire, the young president who was installed, though nominally in charge of everything, was in reality just a puppet emperor for his behind-the-scenes manipulator.
8
9
10
A man, especially a brave or heroic one; also, a boy.
他从小就立志要成为一个顶天立地的儿男。
From a young age, he aspired to become a true and upright man.
11
children; sons and daughters
父母总是希望自己的儿女能健康快乐地成长。
Parents always hope their children can grow up healthy and happy.
12
sexual love or warm feelings among family members
这对老夫妻相伴一生，儿女情深，令人羡慕
This elderly couple, having spent their lives together, shared a profound and admirable affection.
13
Lingering romantic affections or sentimental love, often implying an excessive focus on such matters.
他本想专心学业，却常常因为儿女情长而耽误了时间。
He had originally intended to focus on his studies, but often got sidetracked and wasted time due to romantic involvements.
14
the obligations and burdens parents bear in raising their children
父母为儿女操劳一生，这“儿女债”真是甜蜜又沉重
Parents toil their whole lives for their children; this 'children's debt' is truly sweet yet heavy.
15
childhood
儿时，我总是梦想着成为一名宇航员，探索浩瀚的宇宙。
In my childhood, I always dreamed of becoming an astronaut and exploring the vast universe.
More words with 儿
- huó活ér儿work; job; task; project
- nǚ女ér儿daughter
- zhè这ér儿here
- tāi胎ér儿foetus; embryo
- chá碴ér儿fragment, chip
- chǎn产ér儿newborn baby
- chǒng宠ér儿darling, favorite
- duǒ朵er儿Duo'er, Little Flower
- gū孤ér儿orphan
- hú核ér儿stone (of a fruit), pit, or core
- jiāo娇ér儿beloved boy
- jīn今ér儿today
- kuài块ér儿piece, chunk
- liàng亮ér儿light; a lamp or light source
- nán男ér儿Son, Man
- qì弃ér儿An abandoned child.
- tóu头er儿leader or boss
- yòu幼ér儿Preschooler, Young child
- zhǔn准ér儿certain; sure
- bèi倍ér儿very; particularly; especially
Idioms with 儿
- ér儿nǚ女chéng成háng行to have many children
- ér儿nǚ女qìng亲jiā家children's in-laws
- ér儿nǚ女sī私qíng情romantic love or family affection
- ér儿nǚ女xīn心cháng肠tender-hearted and compassionate
- ér儿nǚ女yīng英xióng雄young heroes and heroines
- ér儿nǚ女zhī之qíng情romantic love between a couple
- ér儿tóng童zhī之jiàn见childish or naive views
- ér儿tóng童zǒu走zú卒ignorant and inexperienced common people
- dài戴gāo高mào帽ér儿flatter someone insincerely
- dào倒bēng绷hái孩ér儿make a silly mistake in a familiar task
- diào吊er儿láng郎dāng当Slovenly, careless, and casual
- diào吊ér儿làng浪dàng荡careless and irresponsible
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Open the tool →Questions about 儿
What does 儿 mean in Chinese?
儿 (ér) means “Child, infant” in Chinese.
How do you pronounce 儿?
儿 is pronounced ér in Mandarin Chinese.
How many strokes does 儿 have?
儿 has 2 strokes.
How do you write 儿?
儿 is written in 2 strokes, starting from the radical 儿. See the animated stroke order on this page.
What is the radical of 儿?
The radical of 儿 is 儿, and 儿 is a pictograph.