连 (lián) is a Chinese character meaning “to link”. It is written from 辶 (walk; go — the "movement" radical (chuò)) and 车 (vehicle; cart), one enclosing the other, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “to link; in succession”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
辶 + 车
Enclosing structure
Structure from: IDS 拆分 ⿺辶车，并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–3 为「车」（横、横折、竖、横），笔画 4–6 为「辶」（点、横折折撇、平捺）
Memory aid
A cart (车) on the road (辶): carts roll past one after another, each one linked to the next.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 连接lián jiēto connect; to join; to link连 = lián
- 连续lián xùcontinuous; in a row; one after another连 = lián
- 连贯lián guàncoherent; connected throughout连 = lián
Go deeper
All readings
to link; in succession
to link; to connect; one after another; in succession
接起来，使不断开；一个接一个。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 连接lián jiēto connect; to join; to link连 = lián
- 连续lián xùcontinuous; in a row; one after another连 = lián
- 连贯lián guàncoherent; connected throughout连 = lián
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 连 mean?
连 (lián) means to link; to connect; one after another; in succession.
How do you pronounce 连?
It is pronounced lián.
What parts is 连 made of?
辶 (walk; go — the "movement" radical (chuò)) and 车 (vehicle; cart), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: IDS 拆分 ⿺辶车，并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–3 为「车」（横、横折、竖、横），笔画 4–6 为「辶」（点、横折折撇、平捺）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 连 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 连?
辶. 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 连?
Common ones are 连接 and 连续. The reading of 连 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.