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明 — bright; opposite: dark 暗[an4]

bright; opposite: dark 暗[an4]; clear; to understand; next

Pinyin
míng · Míng
Strokes
8
HSK level
HSK 1
Handwriting
recognition only

This character has more than one reading — míng, Míng — and the pronunciation depends on the word it appears in. The list below gives the syllabus reading for each word.

How to write 明: 8 strokes

Each cell adds one stroke to the previous ones, with the new stroke in red. Stroke order is not decoration: it sets the proportions of the character and makes handwriting legible to a reader. The syllabus asks you to recognise this character rather than write it by hand.

明 — 8 strokes, in writing order from left to right.

Build a printable practice sheet with 明

Words with 明 in the HSK syllabus: 32

Every word in the official 2026 syllabus that contains this character, with the level it is introduced at. Learning a character pays off through these: each one combines with the characters you already know.

  1. 明年míngniánnext yearHSK 1
  2. 明天míngtiāntomorrowHSK 1
  3. 聪明cōngmíngintelligent; clever; bright; acuteHSK 3
  4. 明白míngbaiclear; obvious; unequivocal; sensible; reasonableHSK 3
  5. 说明shuōmíngto explain; to illustrate; to indicate; to showHSK 4
  6. 说明书shuōmíngshūmanual; directions; synopsis; specificationHSK 4
  7. 证明zhèngmíngproof; certificate; identification; testimonialHSK 4
  8. 表明biǎomíngto make clear; to make known; to state clearlyHSK 5
  9. 发明fāmíngto invent; an inventionHSK 5
  10. 光明guāngmínglight; radiance; bright; openheartedHSK 5
  11. 明确míngquèclear-cut; definite; explicitHSK 5
  12. 明显míngxiǎnclear; distinct; obviousHSK 5
  13. 明星míngxīngstar; celebrityHSK 5
  14. 明亮míngliàngbright; shining; glittering; to become clearHSK 6
  15. 明明míngmíngobviously; plainly; undoubtedly; definitelyHSK 6
  16. 透明tòumíngtransparent; transparent; open to scrutinyHSK 6
  17. 文明wénmíngcivilized; civilization; cultureHSK 6
  18. 鲜明xiānmíngbright; fresh and clear; clear-cut; distinctHSK 6
  19. 照明zhàomínglighting; illumination; to light up; to illuminateHSK 6
  20. 查明chámíngto investigate and find out; to ascertainHSK 7–9
  21. 分明fēnmíngclear; distinct; evidently; clearlyHSK 7–9
  22. 高明gāomíngbrilliant; superior; wiseHSK 7–9
  23. 光明磊落guāngmíng-lěiluòopen and candid; straightforward and uprightHSK 7–9
  24. 精明jīngmíngastute; shrewd; smartHSK 7–9
  25. 开明kāimíngenlightened; open-minded; enlightenmentHSK 7–9
  26. 黎明límíngdawn; daybreakHSK 7–9
  27. 明朗mínglǎngbright; clear; obvious; forthright; open-mindedHSK 7–9
  28. 明媚míngmèibright and beautifulHSK 7–9
  29. 明智míngzhìsensible; wise; judicious; sagaciousHSK 7–9
  30. 声明shēngmíngto state; to declare; statement; declarationHSK 7–9
  31. 失明shīmíngto lose one's eyesight; to become blind; blindnessHSK 7–9
  32. 英明yīngmíngwise; brilliantHSK 7–9

Glosses come from CC-CEDICT, used under CC BY-SA 4.0, and are the dictionary’s first sense rather than a translation chosen for context.