琳 (lín) is a Chinese character meaning “beautiful jade”. It is written from 王 (king) and 林 (woods; grove (two trees side by side)), side by side, and takes 12 strokes.
Build the character for “beautiful jade”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
王 + 林
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字: 琳，美玉也。从玉林声; IDS ⿰王林 (cjkvi-ids, build-time only), checked against hanzi-writer-data strokes 0–3 / 4–11
Memory aid
Jade (王, the jade side) glinting between the trees of a forest (林) — a beautiful gem you can't miss. The forest also gives the sound: lín.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
12 strokes
In real words
- 琳琅满目lín láng mǎn mùa dazzling array of beautiful things; a feast for the eyes琳 = lín
Go deeper
All readings
beautiful jade
beautiful jade; a fine gemstone; often used in given names
美玉。常用于人名。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 琳琅满目lín láng mǎn mùa dazzling array of beautiful things; a feast for the eyes琳 = lín
Sound component
林 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 琳 mean?
琳 (lín) means beautiful jade; a fine gemstone; often used in given names.
How do you pronounce 琳?
It is pronounced lín.
What parts is 琳 made of?
王 (king) and 林 (woods; grove (two trees side by side)), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字: 琳，美玉也。从玉林声; IDS ⿰王林 (cjkvi-ids, build-time only), checked against hanzi-writer-data strokes 0–3 / 4–11. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 琳 have?
12. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 琳?
王. 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 琳?
Common ones are 琳琅满目. The reading of 琳 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.