吟 (yín) is a Chinese character meaning “to chant”. It is written from 口 (mouth) and 今 (now; the present), side by side, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “to chant”
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Structure
口 + 今
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字（吟：呻也。从口今聲），并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–2 为「口」，笔画 3–6 为「今」
Memory aid
A mouth (口) sounding out 今 (jīn) — the mouth tells you what it does, 今 tells you roughly how it sounds: yín, to chant.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 吟诗yín shīto chant poetry; to recite a poem吟 = yín
- 呻吟shēn yínto moan; to groan吟 = yín
- 吟哦yín éto chant; to recite (poetry) rhythmically吟 = yín
Go deeper
All readings
to chant
to chant; to recite aloud; to moan
有节奏地诵读；也指因痛苦而发出低沉的声音。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 吟诗yín shīto chant poetry; to recite a poem吟 = yín
- 呻吟shēn yínto moan; to groan吟 = yín
- 吟哦yín éto chant; to recite (poetry) rhythmically吟 = yín
Sound component
今 family onset shift
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 吟 mean?
吟 (yín) means to chant; to recite aloud; to moan.
How do you pronounce 吟?
It is pronounced yín.
What parts is 吟 made of?
口 (mouth) and 今 (now; the present), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字（吟：呻也。从口今聲），并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–2 为「口」，笔画 3–6 为「今」. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 吟 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 吟?
口. 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 吟?
Common ones are 吟诗 and 呻吟. The reading of 吟 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.