赁 (lìn) is a Chinese character meaning “to rent”. It is written from 任 (to bear; to appoint; duty) and 贝 (shell), one above the other, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “to rent; to hire”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
任 + 贝
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 说文解字: 赁，庸也。从貝任聲
Memory aid
You take on (任) a job and get paid in shells, the old money (贝): hiring out, and later renting, always costs money.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 租赁zū lìnto lease; to rent赁 = lìn
Questions people ask about this character
What does 赁 mean?
赁 (lìn) means to rent; to lease; to hire.
How do you pronounce 赁?
It is pronounced lìn.
What parts is 赁 made of?
任 (to bear; to appoint; duty) and 贝 (shell), one above the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字: 赁，庸也。从貝任聲. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 赁 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 赁?
贝. 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 赁?
Common ones are 租赁. The reading of 赁 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.