衍 (yǎn) is a Chinese character meaning “to spread out”. It is written from 彳 (a short step; the “double-person” left side) and 氵 (water (left-side form)) and 亍 (a small step; the right half of 行), and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “to spread out; to derive”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
彳 + 氵 + 亍
Left–middle–right structure
- 彳 a short step; the “double-person” left side · chì meaning
- 氵 water (left-side form) · shuǐ meaning
- 亍 a small step; the right half of 行 · chù meaning
Structure from: modern-form decomposition, verified against hanzi-writer-data stroke data (彳 strokes 0–2 + 氵 strokes 3–5 + 亍 strokes 6–8 = 衍 9)
Memory aid
Water (氵) running right through the middle of a crossroads — 彳 on the left, 亍 on the right. The stream does not stop at the junction; it spreads out in every direction.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 衍生yǎn shēngto derive; to spin off; derivative衍 = yǎn
- 繁衍fán yǎnto multiply; to reproduce; to propagate衍 = yǎn
Go deeper
All readings
to spread out; to derive
to spread out; to extend; to multiply; to derive (one thing from another)
展开、扩展；由一种事物推演、派生出另一种事物。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 衍生yǎn shēngto derive; to spin off; derivative衍 = yǎn
- 繁衍fán yǎnto multiply; to reproduce; to propagate衍 = yǎn
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 衍 mean?
衍 (yǎn) means to spread out; to extend; to multiply; to derive (one thing from another).
How do you pronounce 衍?
It is pronounced yǎn.
What parts is 衍 made of?
彳 (a short step; the “double-person” left side) and 氵 (water (left-side form)) and 亍 (a small step; the right half of 行). The recorded source is: modern-form decomposition, verified against hanzi-writer-data stroke data (彳 strokes 0–2 + 氵 strokes 3–5 + 亍 strokes 6–8 = 衍 9). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 衍 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 衍?
行. 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 衍?
Common ones are 衍生 and 繁衍. The reading of 衍 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.