绵 mián — silk floss, continuous · English

绵

mián

silk floss, continuous

At a glance · 绵

Listen

Audio is synthesized in your browser: Mandarin for the character and Shuowen text, native voices for every translation. No downloads.

Evolution of the glyph

Five stages, from a sketch of the real object to regular script — tap a stage, drag the timeline, or play the animation.

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seen
Oracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCE
Seal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCE
Clerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CE
Regular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seenOracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCESeal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCEClerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CERegular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

⚠ Some ancient forms are not attested：oracle bone form、seal script form。No excavated oracle bone / seal artifact is attested for this character yet; we leave it blank rather than fabricate.

小篆作「綿」从糸帛声，形声字，本指丝绵。隶楷作「綿」，简化作「绵」。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

「绵」本指丝绵，引申为柔软、延续不断。

Structure

形声字，糸（糹）为意符，帛为声符。

At a glance

Pinyinmián

Radical纟

Strokes11

UnicodeU+7EF5

Character type形声

Theme器物

Six languages, one character

Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.

English silk floss, continuous Silk floss; soft, continuous.

Français soie, continu Soie (flocon); doux, continu.

Español seda, continuo Flocón de seda; suave, continuo.

العربية حرير، متصل حرير أو ناعم ومتصل.

Русский шёлковая вата, непрерывный Шёлковый пух; мягкий, непрерывный.

Common words

连绵lián miáncontinuous
绵miánsoft

◉ Listen