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言 — words; speech; to say

words; speech; to say; to talk

Pinyin
yán
Strokes
7
HSK level
HSK 3
Handwriting
required

How to write 言: 7 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. This character is on the HSK handwriting list, so the exam expects you to write it, not only recognise it.

言 — 7 strokes, in writing order from left to right.

Build a printable practice sheet with 言

Words with 言 in the HSK syllabus: 26

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. 语言yǔyánlanguageHSK 3
  2. 发言fāyánto make a speech; statement; utteranceHSK 5
  3. 留言liúyánto leave a message; to leave one's comments; messageHSK 5
  4. 方言fāngyánthe first Chinese dialect dictionary, edited by Yang Xiong 揚雄|扬雄[Yang2 Xiong2] in 1st century, containing over 9000 charactersHSK 6
  5. 言语yányǔwords; speech; languageHSK 6
  6. 自言自语zìyán-zìyǔto talk to oneself; to think aloud; to soliloquizeHSK 6
  7. 不言而喻bùyán’éryùit goes without saying; it is self-evidentHSK 7–9
  8. 传言chuányánrumor; hearsayHSK 7–9
  9. 代言dàiyánto be a spokesperson; to be an ambassadorHSK 7–9
  10. 发言人fāyánrénspokespersonHSK 7–9
  11. 谎言huǎngyánlieHSK 7–9
  12. 名言míngyánsaying; famous remarkHSK 7–9
  13. 诺言nuòyánpromiseHSK 7–9
  14. 坦言tǎnyánto say candidly; to acknowledge franklyHSK 7–9
  15. 序言xùyánpreface; introductory remarks; preamble; preludeHSK 7–9
  16. 宣言xuānyándeclaration; manifestoHSK 7–9
  17. 言辞yáncíwords; expression; what one saysHSK 7–9
  18. 言论yánlùnexpression of opinion; views; remarks; argumentsHSK 7–9
  19. 言行yánxíngwords and actions; what one says and what one doesHSK 7–9
  20. 谣言yáoyánrumorHSK 7–9
  21. 一言不发yìyán-bùfāto not say a wordHSK 7–9
  22. 一言一行yìyán-yìxíngevery word and actionHSK 7–9
  23. 预言yùyánto predict; prophecyHSK 7–9
  24. 寓言yùyánfable; allegory; parableHSK 7–9
  25. 怨言yuànyáncomplaintHSK 7–9
  26. 总而言之zǒng’éryánzhīin short; in a word; in briefHSK 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.