伸 (shēn) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

伸

shēn[shen1]Tone 1

to stretch, to extend

HSK 5

Guru Deep Dive

English · to stretch, to extend

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:7

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (the person radical 亻) should be narrower and slightly elevated, while the right side (申) provides the structural anchor with its central vertical stroke running straight down the middle.

1. Meaning

to stretch, to extend

to straighten outto put forth

VerbNeutral#movement#body action

Sample Usage

请伸出你的手。
Qǐng shēn chū nǐ de shǒu.
Please extend your hand.
他伸了个懒腰。
Tā shēn le gè lǎn yāo.
He stretched his body (did a lazy stretch).

2. Sound

/[ʂən⁵⁵]/Tone: 55

伸

shēnshen1

¯(55)

=shēn

Initial Consonant

Type: Retroflex Fricative

Sounds like: sh (retroflex sh sound)

UnaspiratedRetroflex

Airflow Tactile Test: Hollow wind sound through curled tongue channel.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip curled back near hard palate

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -e vowel group

Sounds like: -en rhymes with sun

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

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 high and level (55), exactly like singing a single steady note at the top of your normal speaking range.

👂

Listening trap: Beginners often confuse the retroflex 'sh-' with the alveolar 's-'. Ensure your tongue is curled backward for 'shēn', rather than resting flat behind your lower front teeth.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Tone 1 is a high, level pitch, just like a sustained musical note at the top of your vocal range. Picture drawing a straight, flat line across the ceiling with your hand.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 7 strokes

4. Components

Radical 亻 · Person Radical (human, person)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 亻 (indicates human action or bodily movement)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 申 (original sound: shēn)

A person (亻) stands tall and stretches out like lightning or a stretched cord (申) across the sky.

亻 person
申 to express / lightning / phonetic cue

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Combined from the person radical (亻) indicating a human action and 申 (shēn) which originally depicted lightning stretching across the sky, lending both its sound and the core meaning of elongation or extension.

Semantic Evolution: From the imagery of lightning stretching across the sky, combining with a person yields the physical action of stretching out arms, legs, or objects.

The right component 申 historically represented lightning flashing across heaven, which inspired the extended meanings of stretching and expanding.

6. Sinosphere

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: シン / Kun: のば.す, のび.る

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

신

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

A person (亻) uses lightning-fast energy (申) to stretch (shēn) their arms out wide after waking up.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

神

shéngod, spiritAdded the spirit/altar radical (礻) to mean divine spirit.

电

diànelectricityModern simplified form derived from lightning imagery.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

申(shēn)

申 lacks the person radical (亻) on the left and represents an independent character meaning to state or the 9th Earthly Branch.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

累的时候，多[___]懒腰很有好处。

Clue: shēn

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the retroflex initial 'sh-' with a standard English 's', leading to an incorrect dental pronunciation instead of curling the tongue back.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: What does 伸 mean and how is it pronounced with tone?

Production: How do you write the character for 'to stretch' (shēn), and what are its left and right components?

伸shēnto stretch, to extend

Speed:

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