炫 (xuàn) is a Chinese character meaning “to shine brightly”. It is written from 火 (fire) and 玄 (dark; mysterious), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “to dazzle”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
火 + 玄
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字：炫，爌燿也。从火玄聲
Memory aid
Fire (火) against something dark (玄): a blaze looks most dazzling in the dark. Both parts really are in this character.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 炫耀xuàn yàoto show off; to flaunt炫 = xuàn
- 炫目xuàn mùdazzling; blinding to the eye炫 = xuàn
Go deeper
All readings
to dazzle
to shine brightly; to dazzle; to show off
光亮照人；也指夸耀、显示自己。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 炫耀xuàn yàoto show off; to flaunt炫 = xuàn
- 炫目xuàn mùdazzling; blinding to the eye炫 = xuàn
Sound component
玄 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 炫 mean?
炫 (xuàn) means to shine brightly; to dazzle; to show off.
How do you pronounce 炫?
It is pronounced xuàn.
What parts is 炫 made of?
火 (fire) and 玄 (dark; mysterious), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字：炫，爌燿也。从火玄聲. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 炫 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 炫?
火. 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 炫?
Common ones are 炫耀 and 炫目. The reading of 炫 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.