谅 (liàng) is a Chinese character meaning “to forgive”. It is written from 讠 (speech radical) and 京 (capital city), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “to forgive; to understand”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
讠 + 京
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字: 諒，信也。从言京聲 (简化后 言→讠)；现代字形经 hanzi-writer-data 核验（讠2画 + 京8画 = 谅10画；笔画 0–1 为「讠」，2–9 为「京」）
Memory aid
Words (讠) spoken in the capital (京): after a quarrel, a few kind words smooth things over — you forgive and understand.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 原谅yuán liàngto forgive; to excuse谅 = liàng
- 谅解liàng jiěto understand and forgive; understanding谅 = liàng
Go deeper
All readings
to forgive; to understand
to forgive; to excuse; to understand (someone’s situation); to show consideration
原谅，宽恕；体察别人的处境而加以理解。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 原谅yuán liàngto forgive; to excuse谅 = liàng
- 谅解liàng jiěto understand and forgive; understanding谅 = liàng
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 谅 mean?
谅 (liàng) means to forgive; to excuse; to understand (someone’s situation); to show consideration.
How do you pronounce 谅?
It is pronounced liàng.
What parts is 谅 made of?
讠 (speech radical) and 京 (capital city), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字: 諒，信也。从言京聲 (简化后 言→讠)；现代字形经 hanzi-writer-data 核验（讠2画 + 京8画 = 谅10画；笔画 0–1 为「讠」，2–9 为「京」）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 谅 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 谅?
讠. 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 谅?
Common ones are 原谅 and 谅解. The reading of 谅 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.