氨 (ān) is a Chinese character meaning “ammonia (NH₃)”. It is written from 气 (air; gas; breath) and 安 (safe; at peace), one enclosing the other, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “ammonia”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
气 + 安
Enclosing structure
Structure from: IDS 现代字形拆分，已对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画顺序核验（气 4 画包裹，安 6 画在内下方）
Memory aid
A calm, safe (安) home tucked under the curve of 气 (gas) — but open the door and a sharp-smelling gas hits you: ammonia.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 氨气ān qìammonia (gas)氨 = ān
- 氨水ān shuǐammonia solution; aqueous ammonia氨 = ān
Go deeper
All readings
ammonia
ammonia (NH₃); amino- (in chemistry terms)
氮和氢的化合物，无色、有强烈刺激性气味的气体；也用于「氨基」等化学名词。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 氨气ān qìammonia (gas)氨 = ān
- 氨水ān shuǐammonia solution; aqueous ammonia氨 = ān
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 氨 mean?
氨 (ān) means ammonia (NH₃); amino- (in chemistry terms).
How do you pronounce 氨?
It is pronounced ān.
What parts is 氨 made of?
气 (air; gas; breath) and 安 (safe; at peace), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: IDS 现代字形拆分，已对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画顺序核验（气 4 画包裹，安 6 画在内下方）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 氨 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 氨?
气. 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 氨?
Common ones are 氨气 and 氨水. The reading of 氨 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.