混 (hùn) is a Chinese character meaning “to mix”. It is written from 氵 (water (left-side form)) and 昆 (elder brother; multitude (sun 日 over 比)), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “to mix”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
氵 + 昆
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字「混，豐流也。从水昆聲」；IDS 拆分 ⿰氵昆，并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–2 为「氵」三点，笔画 3–10 与「昆」逐笔对应（3+8=11画）
Memory aid
Water (氵) poured over a crowd (昆) — everything gets mixed together and muddled.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 混合hùn héto mix; to blend; mixed混 = hùn
- 混乱hùn luànchaos; confusion; chaotic混 = hùn
- 混淆hùn xiáoto confuse; to mix up; to blur (the line between)混 = hùn
Go deeper
All readings
to mix
to mix; to blend; to mingle; to pass for; to muddle along
搀杂在一起；蒙混，冒充；苟且度日。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 混合hùn héto mix; to blend; mixed混 = hùn
- 混乱hùn luànchaos; confusion; chaotic混 = hùn
- 混淆hùn xiáoto confuse; to mix up; to blur (the line between)混 = hùn
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 混 mean?
混 (hùn) means to mix; to blend; to mingle; to pass for; to muddle along.
How do you pronounce 混?
It is pronounced hùn.
What parts is 混 made of?
氵 (water (left-side form)) and 昆 (elder brother; multitude (sun 日 over 比)), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字「混，豐流也。从水昆聲」；IDS 拆分 ⿰氵昆，并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–2 为「氵」三点，笔画 3–10 与「昆」逐笔对应（3+8=11画）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 混 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 混?
氵. 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 混?
Common ones are 混合 and 混乱. The reading of 混 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.