虹 (hóng) is a Chinese character meaning “rainbow”. It is written from 虫 (insect; bug; worm) and 工 (work), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “rainbow”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
虫 + 工
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分，以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：9 画 = 虫 6 画 + 工 3 画；部首取康熙 142 虫部；构形依据《说文解字》虫部「虹，螮蝀也。狀似蟲。从虫工聲」；声符档位只依据实测现代读音（工 gōng / 虹 hóng 声母不同、韵母相同）
Memory aid
A creature (虫) arching across the sky, with 工 on the right carrying the sound. Picture a long serpent of colour bending over the fields — that arc is the rainbow.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 彩虹cǎi hóngrainbow虹 = hóng
- 霓虹ní hóngneon (as in neon lights)虹 = hóng
Go deeper
All readings
rainbow
rainbow
雨后天空中出现的弧形彩带，由阳光经水滴折射、反射形成。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 彩虹cǎi hóngrainbow虹 = hóng
- 霓虹ní hóngneon (as in neon lights)虹 = hóng
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 虹 mean?
虹 (hóng) means rainbow.
How do you pronounce 虹?
It is pronounced hóng.
What parts is 虹 made of?
虫 (insect; bug; worm) and 工 (work), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分，以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：9 画 = 虫 6 画 + 工 3 画；部首取康熙 142 虫部；构形依据《说文解字》虫部「虹，螮蝀也。狀似蟲。从虫工聲」；声符档位只依据实测现代读音（工 gōng / 虹 hóng 声母不同、韵母相同）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 虹 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 虹?
虫. 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 虹?
Common ones are 彩虹 and 霓虹. The reading of 虹 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.