肿 (zhǒng) is a Chinese character meaning “to swell”. It is written from 月 (moon; month) and 中 (middle; center), side by side, and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “swollen”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
月 + 中
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分（IDS ⿰月中，已对照 hanzi-writer-data 8 笔核验：月 4 笔 + 中 4 笔）；声符身份依据《说文解字》「腫，从肉，重聲」在简化字形中改以「中」表音
Memory aid
月 on the left is the flesh radical — whatever this is, it is happening to a body. On the right is 中 (zhōng), a box with a line pushed straight through the middle: something has been driven into the flesh, and the flesh puffs up around it. Both parts are really in this character. 中 is also the sound part — only the tone moved: 中 zhōng → 肿 zhǒng.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 红肿hóng zhǒngred and swollen; inflamed肿 = zhǒng
- 肿瘤zhǒng liútumor肿 = zhǒng
- 肿胀zhǒng zhàngswelling; to be swollen肿 = zhǒng
Go deeper
All readings
to swell; swollen
to swell; swollen; a swelling (of skin or flesh, from injury or illness)
皮肤或肌肉因受伤、发炎等原因鼓起来；浮肿。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 红肿hóng zhǒngred and swollen; inflamed肿 = zhǒng
- 肿瘤zhǒng liútumor肿 = zhǒng
- 肿胀zhǒng zhàngswelling; to be swollen肿 = zhǒng
Sound component
中 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 肿 mean?
肿 (zhǒng) means to swell; swollen; a swelling (of skin or flesh, from injury or illness).
How do you pronounce 肿?
It is pronounced zhǒng.
What parts is 肿 made of?
月 (moon; month) and 中 (middle; center), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分（IDS ⿰月中，已对照 hanzi-writer-data 8 笔核验：月 4 笔 + 中 4 笔）；声符身份依据《说文解字》「腫，从肉，重聲」在简化字形中改以「中」表音. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 肿 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 肿?
月. 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 肿?
Common ones are 红肿 and 肿瘤. The reading of 肿 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.