铃 (líng) is a Chinese character meaning “bell”. It is written from 钅 (metal radical (left-side form of 金)) and 令 (to order; a command), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “bell”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
钅 + 令
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字「鈴，令丁也。从金从令，令亦聲」；现代字形拆分对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：钅 5 画 + 令 5 画 = 10 画；读音比对 令 lìng → 铃 líng
Memory aid
A metal (钅) thing that gives an order (令) to everyone: the bell rings, and people move.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 门铃mén língdoorbell铃 = líng
- 铃声líng shēngringing sound; ringtone铃 = líng
- 杠铃gàng língbarbell铃 = líng
- 铃铛líng dāngsmall bell; jingle bell铃 = língspoken aslíng dang
Go deeper
All readings
bell
bell; small bell; something bell-shaped
用金属制成、摇动或敲击能发声的器物；也指形状像铃的东西。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 门铃mén língdoorbell铃 = líng
- 铃声líng shēngringing sound; ringtone铃 = líng
- 杠铃gàng língbarbell铃 = líng
- 铃铛líng dāngsmall bell; jingle bell铃 = língspoken aslíng dang
Sound component
令 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 铃 mean?
铃 (líng) means bell; small bell; something bell-shaped.
How do you pronounce 铃?
It is pronounced líng.
What parts is 铃 made of?
钅 (metal radical (left-side form of 金)) and 令 (to order; a command), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字「鈴，令丁也。从金从令，令亦聲」；现代字形拆分对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：钅 5 画 + 令 5 画 = 10 画；读音比对 令 lìng → 铃 líng. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 铃 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 铃?
金. 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 铃?
Common ones are 门铃, 铃声, 杠铃. The reading of 铃 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.