泛 (fàn) is a Chinese character meaning “to float on water”. It is written from 氵 (water (left-side form)) and 乏 (lacking; short of), side by side, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “to float; wide-ranging”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
氵 + 乏
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字·水部（泛，浮也。从水乏聲）；现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 核验：7 画 = 氵 3 画 + 乏 4 画
Memory aid
Water (氵) that is lacking (乏) any banks to hold it: it floats free and spreads out over everything.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 广泛guǎng fànextensive; widespread泛 = fàn
- 泛滥fàn lànto flood; to overflow泛 = fàn
Go deeper
All readings
to float; general, wide-ranging
to float on water; to spread or flood over; broad, general, not limited to one thing
漂浮在水面上；水向四处漫溢。也表示范围广、不专指某一方面。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 广泛guǎng fànextensive; widespread泛 = fàn
- 泛滥fàn lànto flood; to overflow泛 = fàn
Sound component
乏 family rime near
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 泛 mean?
泛 (fàn) means to float on water; to spread or flood over; broad, general, not limited to one thing.
How do you pronounce 泛?
It is pronounced fàn.
What parts is 泛 made of?
氵 (water (left-side form)) and 乏 (lacking; short of), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字·水部（泛，浮也。从水乏聲）；现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 核验：7 画 = 氵 3 画 + 乏 4 画. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 泛 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 泛?
水. 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 泛?
Common ones are 广泛 and 泛滥. The reading of 泛 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.