厉 (lì) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

厉

lì[li4]Tone 4

strict, severe

HSK 5

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厲

Guru Deep Dive

English · strict, severe

Cached lesson

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Topology:Semi-enclosure

Strokes:5

Writing Balance Rule: The outer cliff radical (厂) arches gracefully over the inner structure, ensuring the lower components nestle neatly underneath without tipping the center of gravity.

Simplification Logic: Simplified from 厲 (15 strokes) by replacing the complex internal parts with 万 (wàn) to streamline writing while preserving the outer shell.

1. Meaning

strict, severe, stern

fiercesurname Li

AdjectiveNeutralBound morpheme#personality#behavior#surnames

Sample Usage

严厉
yánlì
stern, severe
厉害
lìhai
fierce, formidable, awesome

2. Sound

/[li⁵¹]/Tone: 51

厉

lìli4

`(51)

=lì

Initial Consonant

Type: Alveolar Lateral

Sounds like: l sound

Unaspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: Air flows freely around both sides of tongue.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip touches the alveolar ridge, letting air pass along the sides.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -i vowel group

Sounds like: -ee sound as in 'see'

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

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

Tone

T4 (51)

5 → 1 (51)

4th Tone (High-Falling)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 4 starts high and drops sharply like a command or a firm 'No!' in English.

Sandhi: When followed by another Tone 4 syllable, the tone changes to a half-falling tone (52).

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the sharp falling Tone 4 with Tone 2 (rising) or Tone 3 (dipping). Make sure the pitch starts high and drops immediately.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: A sharp chop downward with your hand, mirroring the sudden downward drop of Tone 4 from high to low.

3. Writing

Topology: Semi-enclosure · Strokes: 5 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The outer cliff radical (厂) arches gracefully over the inner structure, ensuring the lower components nestle neatly underneath without tipping the center of gravity.

Simplification Logic: Simplified from 厲 (15 strokes) by replacing the complex internal parts with 万 (wàn) to streamline writing while preserving the outer shell.

4. Components

Radical 厂 · Cliff radical (cliff, side of a hill)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 厂 (Provides the cliff/shelter setting representing strict boundaries.)

A strict authority figure stands under a steep cliff (厂) guarding the boundary with absolute severity.

厂 cliff radical
万 ten thousand / simplified inner phonetic element

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

3· Phonetic Root: 厉 (lì)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally depicted a person under a cliff or shelter facing a stern trial, later evolving to mean strict or severe.

Semantic Evolution: Shifted from physical danger or steepness under a cliff to moral strictness, severity, and as a family surname.

The traditional form 厲 contains multiple stacked components representing sharpening stones and ghosts, which were simplified into today's cleaner form.

6. Sinosphere

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: レイ / Kun: はし.る, きび.しい

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

력

Sound Shift Bridge: The initial 'l-' and final '-i' match closely across East Asian borrowings like Korean 'ryeok/lyeok' and Japanese 'rei'.

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

A strict (厉) teacher stands under a steep cliff (厂), holding ten thousand (万) rules that must be followed without exception.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

励

lìto encourageReplaces the inner part with 力 (strength), meaning strength under a cliff is used to encourage.

砺

lìgrindstoneAdds stone (石) on the left, referring to a stone used for sharpening.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

励(lì)

厉 has 万 inside (strict rules), whereas 励 has 力 inside (encouraging strength).

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

老师的态度非常[___]。

Clue: lì

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing 厉 (lì - strict) with 励 (lì - encourage) due to their identical pronunciation and similar visual structures.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see the character 厉 with a cliff radical and 'wan' inside, what does it mean and how is it pronounced?

Production: How do you write the character for 'strict/severe' (lì) using the cliff radical?

厉lìstrict, severe

Speed:

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