了 (le) is a Chinese character meaning “a particle marking a completed action or a new situation”. It is written from 乛 (horizontal hook stroke) and 亅 (vertical hook), one above the other, and takes 2 strokes. It has a second reading, liǎo, which turns up in 了解 — here the two readings are two separate things to learn, not one card with two answers.
Build the character for “completed-action particle”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
乛 + 亅
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: makemeahanzi dictionary modern decomposition candidate (⿱乛亅), verified against hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 stroke geometry
Memory aid
Put the horizontal hook (乛) above the vertical hook (亅): two hooked strokes complete 了.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
2 strokes
In real words
- 吃了chī leate; have eaten了 = le
- 罢了bà lethat is all; nothing more了 = le
Go deeper
All readings
completed-action particle
a particle marking a completed action or a new situation
助词，表示动作完成或情况发生变化。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 吃了chī leate; have eaten了 = le
- 罢了bà lethat is all; nothing more了 = le
understand; finish
to understand; to finish or settle
明白；结束或办妥。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 了解liǎo jiěto understand; to learn about了 = liǎo
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 了 mean?
了 (le) means a particle marking a completed action or a new situation.
How do you pronounce 了?
Its main reading is le. It also has a second reading, liǎo, which only shows up in certain words such as 了解 — so the word tells you the reading, not the character on its own.
Why is 了 sometimes pronounced liǎo?
Because it is a multi-reading character: each reading carries a different sense, and the word decides which one applies. In 了解 it is read liǎo.
What parts is 了 made of?
乛 (horizontal hook stroke) and 亅 (vertical hook), one above the other. The recorded source is: makemeahanzi dictionary modern decomposition candidate (⿱乛亅), verified against hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 stroke geometry. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 了 have?
2. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 了?
亅. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 了?
Common ones are 吃了. The reading of 了 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.