Learn a Chinese Character - 增 (zēng) - Increase

1. Character Basics (汉字基本信息)

Radical: 土 (Earth radical)

Stroke Count: 15 (Fifteen strokes)

Character Decomposition: 土 + 曾 (Earth + Zeng, where 曾 here is a phonetic component)

Stroke Order:

2. Pronunciation (发音)

Pinyin: zēng (First tone)

3. Meaning (含义)

增 means to increase, add, or augment. It implies the action of making something larger in quantity, size, degree, etc.

4. Common Words (常用词汇)

• 增加 (zēng jiā) - Increase, add
• 增长 (zēng zhǎng) - Grow, increase (in quantity or degree)
• 增强 (zēng qiáng) - Strengthen, enhance

5. Grammar & Usage (语法与用法)

增 is often used as a verb. It can be followed by a noun to indicate what is being increased. For example, "增加数量" (zēng jiā shù liàng) means to increase the quantity. It can also be used in more complex sentence structures to express the idea of growth or addition.

6. Cultural Background (文化背景)

In Chinese culture, the concept of "increase" is often associated with progress, development, and prosperity. For example, in business and economic contexts, people often talk about increasing profits, market share, etc. It also has positive connotations in personal growth and learning, such as increasing knowledge and skills.

7. Example Sentence (例句)

8. Memory Tips (记忆技巧)

You can remember 增 by thinking that the "土" (earth) radical may symbolize the foundation, and "曾" can be associated with the idea of something gradually building up. So, together, it means to increase on the basis of something. 你可以这样记忆“增”字，“土”字旁象征着基础，“曾”可以联想为事物逐渐积累的过程，合起来就是在某个基础上增加的意思。