Writing Balance Rule: The water radical on the left is narrow and slightly compressed, while the right component provides structural weight and width.
Simplification Logic: The traditional form 淚 uses 户 on the right, which was simplified in the modern form to 犬 inside, retaining the phonetic and visual shape.
1. Meaning
tears or teardrops
to weep or shed tears
NounNeutralBound morpheme#emotion#body parts#physical state
Sample Usage
眼泪
yǎnlèi
tears
流泪
liúlèi
to shed tears
2. Sound
/[leɪ̯⁵¹]/Tone: 51
泪
lèilei4
|
++
`(51)
=lèi
Initial Consonant
l
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 right behind the upper front teeth.
Final Rhyme
ei
Vowel Group: -e vowel group
Sounds like: -ei rhymes with 'ay' in day
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'ay'.
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 plunges sharply down, just like expressing sudden annoyance or certainty in English ('No!').
Sandhi: When followed by another Tone 4 syllable, it softens slightly to a 53 pitch contour, though the falling direction remains sharp.
👂
Listening trap: Do not confuse it with Tone 2 (léi) or Tone 3 (lěi); Tone 4 starts high and drops immediately without dipping.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: A sharp karate chop downward, mirroring the rapid plunge from the ceiling to the floor.
3. Writing
Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 8 strokes
Writing Balance Rule: The water radical on the left is narrow and slightly compressed, while the right component provides structural weight and width.
Simplification Logic: The traditional form 淚 uses 户 on the right, which was simplified in the modern form to 犬 inside, retaining the phonetic and visual shape.
4. Components
Radical氵 · Water Radical (water or liquid)
Semantic Clue (形旁):氵 (indicates that tears are a liquid secretion)
Phonetic Clue (声旁):戾 (original sound: lèi)
Water (氵) plus a criminal or bent structure (戾) representing the inner turmoil and sorrow that causes water to stream down from the eyes.
氵 water / liquid
戾 phonetic and meaning hint for twisting or struggling emotion
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)
Origin: Combined from the water sign (氵) to denote liquid and a phonetic element (戾) representing the distressful origin of crying.
Semantic Evolution: Originally signified any weeping liquid from the eyes, remaining consistent in meaning from classical poetry to modern vocabulary.
Tears in classical Chinese literature frequently symbolize deep nostalgia, parting sorrow, or profound political frustration.
6. Sinosphere
🇯🇵
Kanji (Japanese)
On: ルイ / Kun: なみだ
🇰🇷
Hanja (Korean)
루
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story
Water (氵) drips down your face when you feel a twist of sorrow inside (戾), forming hot tears (lèi).
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
戾
lìviolent / fierceLacks the water radical; means a twisted or violent nature.
房
fángroomUses the door radical instead of water.
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
雷(léi)
雷 has rain (雨) on top and field (田) below, meaning thunder, whereas 泪 has water (氵) on the left for tears.
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
听到这个感人的故事，她忍不住流下了[___]。
Clue: lèi
Common Learner Pitfall
Confusing the right-hand component 戾 with unrelated graphs like 户 or 戸 due to similar box-like structures.
Memory Prompts
Recognition: What does the character 泪 mean and how is it pronounced?
Production: How do you write the character for 'tears' using the water radical?
Real-World Video Context
Watch authentic native speakers pronounce and explain this word in real-world YouTube videos.
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泪lèitears
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