痒 (yǎng) is a Chinese character meaning “itchy”. It is written from 疒 (sickness radical (a person lying on a bed)) and 羊 (sheep; goat), one enclosing the other, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “itchy; to itch”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
疒 + 羊
Enclosing structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分（hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：0-4 疒 / 5-10 羊）
Memory aid
Inside the sickness frame 疒 stands a sheep 羊 (yáng). The frame says it is a body complaint; 羊 lends the sound — an itch, yǎng.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 发痒fā yǎngto itch; to feel itchy痒 = yǎng
- 止痒zhǐ yǎngto relieve itching痒 = yǎng
- 搔痒sāo yǎngto scratch an itch痒 = yǎng
Go deeper
All readings
itchy; to itch
itchy; to itch; (figuratively) to have an itch to do something
皮肤或黏膜受刺激，想要抓挠的感觉；也比喻想做某事的心情。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 发痒fā yǎngto itch; to feel itchy痒 = yǎng
- 止痒zhǐ yǎngto relieve itching痒 = yǎng
- 搔痒sāo yǎngto scratch an itch痒 = yǎng
Sound component
羊 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 痒 mean?
痒 (yǎng) means itchy; to itch; (figuratively) to have an itch to do something.
How do you pronounce 痒?
It is pronounced yǎng.
What parts is 痒 made of?
疒 (sickness radical (a person lying on a bed)) and 羊 (sheep; goat), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分（hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：0-4 疒 / 5-10 羊）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 痒 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 痒?
疒. 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 痒?
Common ones are 发痒 and 止痒. The reading of 痒 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.