演 (yǎn) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

演

yǎn[yan3]Tone 3

to perform

HSK 3

Guru Deep Dive

English · to perform

Cached lesson

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:14

Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (氵) takes up about one-third of the width, while the right component (寅) occupies the remaining two-thirds with a strong horizontal emphasis in its middle section.

1. Meaning

to perform (a play, show, etc.)

to developto play outto carry out

VerbNeutral#arts#entertainment#action#process

Sample Usage

他们在台上演戏。
Tāmen zài táishang yǎnxì.
They are acting on stage.
科技在不断地演变。
Kējì zài búduàn de yǎnbiàn.
Technology is constantly evolving.

2. Sound

/[jan²¹⁴]/Tone: 214

演

yǎnyan3

ˇ(214)

=yǎn

Initial Consonant

Type: Palatal Glide (Zero Initial)

Sounds like: y sound like English 'y' in 'yes'

Unaspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: Acts as a bridge into 'i' or 'ü' vowel sounds.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue body rises toward the hard palate for the initial semivowel glide.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -a vowel group

Sounds like: -an rhymes with 'on' in British English or 'an' in 'man'

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

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

Tone

T3 (214)

2 → 1 → 4 (214)

3rd Tone (Low-Dipping)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 3 dips down and rises back up, similar to saying 'What?' in disbelief.

Sandhi: When followed by another 3rd tone, yǎn changes to a 2nd tone (yán).

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the 3rd tone dipping contour with a flat or rising tone when spoken quickly in compound words.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Start at mid pitch, dip down low to your chest, and sweep back up high like a checkmark.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 14 strokes

4. Components

Radical 氵 · Water Radical (water, liquid, flow)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 氵 (Relates to flowing water, waves, or actions that flow smoothly like a performance.)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 寅 (original sound: yín)

Water (氵) flows smoothly like a grand theatrical performance or unfolding process orchestrated by an official or person (寅).

氵 Water / fluid action
寅 Yín (phonetic / earthly branch)

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

3· Phonetic Root: 寅 (yín)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally combined water (氵) with a phonetic indicator (寅). Over time, the meaning shifted from water overflowing or spreading out to things developing, unfolding, and eventually performing on stage.

Semantic Evolution: From flowing water/spreading out ➔ expanding/developing ➔ staging a play or performance.

Performances in ancient China often took place near water or were compared to flowing currents of emotion.

6. Sinosphere

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: エン

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

演

Sound Shift Bridge: Japanese On'yomi 'en' shares a cognate phonetic root with Mandarin 'yǎn'.

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Water (氵) splashes on stage as actors perform (演) a dramatic water-themed play, making the entire plot flow smoothly.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

寅

yínEarthly branch / 3rd Earthly BranchBase phonetic component without the water radical.

捡

jiǎnto pick upUses hand radical (扌) instead of water (氵).

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

验(yàn)

验 uses the horse radical (马) on the left instead of water (氵) and means to examine or test.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

演员们在台上精彩地[___]了一出历史剧。

Clue: yǎn

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the right-hand component 寅 with similar complex radicals, or missing strokes in the middle of the character.

Memory Prompts

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

Production: How do you write the character for 'to perform' (yǎn) using the water radical?

演yǎnto perform

Speed:

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