丧 (sāng) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

丧

sāng[sang1]Tone 1

mourning, funeral

HSK 6

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喪

Multiple Readings (多音字):

Guru Deep Dive

English · mourning, funeral

Cached lesson

1 / 1

Topology:Top-bottom

Strokes:12

Writing Balance Rule: Keep the top components compact and let the bottom part spread out stably like a wide base.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form 喪 was streamlined in modern simplified Chinese to 丧, reducing complex internal strokes while preserving the overall silhouette.

1. Meaning

mourning, funeral

(old) corpseruined, lost, depressed

Noun / VerbFormal / LiteraryBound morpheme#death#rituals#emotions

Sample Usage

办丧事
bàn sāngshì
to handle funeral arrangements
丧失
sàngshī
to lose, to forfeit (using tone 4 variant)

2. Sound

/[sɑŋ⁵⁵]/Tone: 55

丧

sāngsang1

¯(55)

=sāng

Initial Consonant

Type: Dental Fricative

Sounds like: s as in sun

Unaspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: Clear, steady sibilant hiss.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip near lower teeth, creating a narrow gap for air to hiss.

Final Rhyme

ang

Vowel Group: -a vowel group

Sounds like: -ang rhymes with hung/sung

Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'ahng'.

Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.

Tone

T1 (55)

5 → 5 (55)

1st Tone (High-Flat)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 1 is flat and high, like a musical note sustained steadily at the top of your voice range.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing it with sǎng (3rd tone) or sàng (4th tone, meaning to lose).

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: A high, flat horizon line with your hand, holding the high pitch steady.

3. Writing

Topology: Top-bottom · Strokes: 12 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: Keep the top components compact and let the bottom part spread out stably like a wide base.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form 喪 was streamlined in modern simplified Chinese to 丧, reducing complex internal strokes while preserving the overall silhouette.

4. Components

Radical 歹 · Death / Bone Radical (death, decay, misfortune)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 歹 (indicates death and mourning)

Composed of a dead body symbol (歹), a mouth or crying element, and falling pieces representing a funeral procession.

歹 death or decay
哭 components crying or weeping over loss

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally depicted a person mourning with weeping elements over a perished body (歹), signifying grief and funeral rites.

Semantic Evolution: From physical funeral rites and dead bodies to general mourning, and extended to losing or forfeiting things in modern compounds.

In ancient times, attending a 丧 was bound by strict ritual obligations and mourning garments.

6. Sinosphere

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: ソウ / Kun: 丧.suru / mo

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

상

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

At a funeral (sāng), you stand by the death radical (歹) with a heavy heart, crying high and flat like Tone 1.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

送

sòngto send / deliverAdded movement/path radical (辶) to mean seeing someone off.

鮳

sāngfish nameRare variant with fish radical.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

桑(sāng)

桑 means mulberry tree and uses wood (木) at the bottom instead of the death radical.

丢(diū)

丢 means to lose, but has a completely different visual structure.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

家里最近办了一场[___]事。

Clue: sāng

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the tone 1 (sāng, mourning/funeral) with tone 4 (sàng, as in 丧气 depressed or 丧失 to lose).

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see 丧 with tone 1, what primary concept does it represent?

Production: How do you write the character for funeral/mourning (sāng)?

丧sāngmourning, funeral

Speed:

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