眯 (mī) is a Chinese character meaning “to narrow one's eyes”. It is written from 目 (eye) and 米 (rice (uncooked grains)), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “to squint”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
目 + 米
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分（IDS ⿰目米；笔画核验 目5 + 米6 = 11）
Memory aid
Your eye (目) narrows to a slit, as small as a grain of rice (米) — you are squinting.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 眯眼mī yǎnto squint; to narrow one's eyes眯 = mī
- 笑眯眯xiào mī mīsmiling with narrowed eyes; all smiles眯 = mī
Go deeper
All readings
to squint
to narrow one's eyes; to squint
眼皮微微合上，眼睛只留一条缝。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 眯眼mī yǎnto squint; to narrow one's eyes眯 = mī
- 笑眯眯xiào mī mīsmiling with narrowed eyes; all smiles眯 = mī
Rare readings, not taught: mí
Sound component
米 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 眯 mean?
眯 (mī) means to narrow one's eyes; to squint.
How do you pronounce 眯?
It is pronounced mī.
What parts is 眯 made of?
目 (eye) and 米 (rice (uncooked grains)), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分（IDS ⿰目米；笔画核验 目5 + 米6 = 11）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 眯 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 眯?
目. 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 眯?
Common ones are 眯眼 and 笑眯眯. The reading of 眯 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.