The character 蓝 — “blue”: how to write it and what it means

蓝
lán

blue

13 strokes · HSK 3 · word page

The Chinese character 蓝 is read lán and means “blue”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.

Stroke order: how to write 蓝

蓝 has 13 strokes. At each step the new stroke is highlighted — write them in the same order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical, a frame before what is inside it, and the bottom stroke of the frame last.

To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for 蓝, with strokes to trace and empty squares.

What 蓝 is made of

On top, 艹 “grass”: blue dye was made from the indigo plant. The bottom part is the same as in 篮 lán.

The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.

Frequently asked questions

How do you write the character 蓝?

蓝 has 13 strokes. They follow the usual rules: top to bottom, left to right, horizontal before vertical, outside before inside. The order of each stroke is shown on this page.

What does 蓝 mean?

蓝 means “blue”.

How do you pronounce 蓝?

蓝 is read lán. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.

How many strokes does 蓝 have?

13 strokes.

← 满 full黄 yellow →

More characters on the page “Chinese characters with meanings” and in the list of HSK characters by level; whole words are in the dictionary.

Write 蓝 yourself

In the lessons you write characters stroke by stroke with a finger or a mouse, and the course checks the order. You can start for free, no sign-up needed.

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