描 (miáo) is a Chinese character meaning “to trace (over a model)”. It is written from 扌 (hand (radical form)) and 苗 (sprout; young plant), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “to trace; to depict”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
扌 + 苗
Left–right structure
Structure from: studyhanzi 现代字形拆分（笔画数据核验：扌 3 画 + 苗 8 画 = 11 画）
Memory aid
A hand (扌) carefully tracing the outline of young sprouts (苗) — copying their shape line by line is how you trace and depict.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 描述miáo shùto describe; to depict描 = miáo
- 描绘miáo huìto depict; to portray; to describe描 = miáo
Go deeper
All readings
to trace; to depict
to trace (over a model); to copy by drawing; to depict; to touch up (a drawing or writing)
照着底样画或写；也指用笔、语言把样子画出或说出来。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 描述miáo shùto describe; to depict描 = miáo
- 描绘miáo huìto depict; to portray; to describe描 = miáo
Easy to confuse with
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 描 mean?
描 (miáo) means to trace (over a model); to copy by drawing; to depict; to touch up (a drawing or writing).
How do you pronounce 描?
It is pronounced miáo.
What parts is 描 made of?
扌 (hand (radical form)) and 苗 (sprout; young plant), side by side. The recorded source is: studyhanzi 现代字形拆分（笔画数据核验：扌 3 画 + 苗 8 画 = 11 画）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 描 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 描?
手. 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 描?
Common ones are 描述 and 描绘. The reading of 描 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.