捏 (niē) is a Chinese character meaning “to pinch (between the fingers)”. It is written from 扌 (hand (radical form)) and 圼 (the right-hand block of 捏: 日 stacked over 土), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “to pinch; to knead”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
扌 + 圼
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分，对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：扌 3 画 + 圼 7 画 = 10 画；右部功能无可追溯来源，留为 unknown
Memory aid
A hand (扌) pressing into the lump of clay on the right (圼) — squeezing it between the fingers is how you pinch.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 捏造niē zàoto fabricate; to make up (a story, facts)捏 = niē
Go deeper
All readings
to pinch; to knead
to pinch (between the fingers); to knead; to mould (clay, dough); to fabricate
用拇指和别的手指夹住；用手指把软的东西捏成一定形状；也指凭空编造。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 捏造niē zàoto fabricate; to make up (a story, facts)捏 = niē
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 捏 mean?
捏 (niē) means to pinch (between the fingers); to knead; to mould (clay, dough); to fabricate.
How do you pronounce 捏?
It is pronounced niē.
What parts is 捏 made of?
扌 (hand (radical form)) and 圼 (the right-hand block of 捏: 日 stacked over 土), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分，对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：扌 3 画 + 圼 7 画 = 10 画；右部功能无可追溯来源，留为 unknown. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 捏 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 捏?
手. 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 捏?
Common ones are 捏造. The reading of 捏 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.