圆 (yuán) is a Chinese character meaning “round”. It is written from 囗 (enclosure, surrounding frame) and 员 (member; person in a role), one enclosing the other, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “round; circle”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
囗 + 员
Enclosing structure
Structure from: 说文解字：圓，圜全也。从囗員聲（员为員的简化字形）
Memory aid
A staff member (员) walks all the way around the wall (囗) and ends up where they started — a full circle. Both parts are really in this character.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 圆形yuán xíngcircle; circular shape圆 = yuán
- 团圆tuán yuán(family) reunion; to be reunited圆 = yuán
- 圆圈yuán quāncircle; ring圆 = yuán
Go deeper
All readings
round; circle
round; circular; a circle; complete, satisfactory; yuan (unit of Chinese currency)
形状像圆圈的；圆形；完整、周全；也用作货币单位，同“元”。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 圆形yuán xíngcircle; circular shape圆 = yuán
- 团圆tuán yuán(family) reunion; to be reunited圆 = yuán
- 圆圈yuán quāncircle; ring圆 = yuán
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 圆 mean?
圆 (yuán) means round; circular; a circle; complete, satisfactory; yuan (unit of Chinese currency).
How do you pronounce 圆?
It is pronounced yuán.
What parts is 圆 made of?
囗 (enclosure, surrounding frame) and 员 (member; person in a role), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字：圓，圜全也。从囗員聲（员为員的简化字形）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 圆 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 圆?
囗. 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 圆?
Common ones are 圆形 and 团圆. The reading of 圆 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.