麻 (má) is a Chinese character meaning “hemp and similar fibre plants”. It is written from 广 (wide; dotted cliff radical) and 林 (woods; grove (two trees side by side)), one enclosing the other, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “hemp; numb”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
广 + 林
Enclosing structure
Structure from: 现代简化字形拆分（hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：0-2 广 / 3-10 林）
Memory aid
Under a shelter (广), stalks cut from a grove (林) hang up to dry — picture hemp being prepared. This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 麻烦má fantrouble; troublesome; to bother麻 = má
- 麻雀má quèsparrow; mahjong麻 = má
- 麻疹má zhěnmeasles麻 = má
Go deeper
All readings
hemp; numb
hemp and similar fibre plants; sesame; numb, tingling; pockmarked
大麻、亚麻等植物的统称，纤维可以织布；也指芝麻；又指身体发木、发酸的感觉。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 麻烦má fantrouble; troublesome; to bother麻 = má
- 麻雀má quèsparrow; mahjong麻 = má
- 麻疹má zhěnmeasles麻 = má
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 麻 mean?
麻 (má) means hemp and similar fibre plants; sesame; numb, tingling; pockmarked.
How do you pronounce 麻?
It is pronounced má.
What parts is 麻 made of?
广 (wide; dotted cliff radical) and 林 (woods; grove (two trees side by side)), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: 现代简化字形拆分（hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：0-2 广 / 3-10 林）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 麻 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 麻?
麻. 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 麻?
Common ones are 麻烦, 麻雀, 麻疹. The reading of 麻 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.