长 (cháng): long, (bound form) length, (bound form) strong point, forte
长 (cháng) is a Chinese character meaning “long.” Classified as HSK Level 2 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 一 (structural). It ranks #109 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 长 simplified form of 長; an old man with long hair and a cane. Its radical form 长 (long) appears in many related characters.
Definitions
- long
- (bound form) length
- (bound form) strong point
- forte
Etymology & Origin
ideographicSimplified form of 長; an old man with long hair and a cane
Stroke Order
Practice writing 长 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 长
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 队长noun | duì zhǎng | captain | 4 |
| 擅长verb | shàn cháng | to be good at | 5 |
| 校长noun | xiào zhǎng | (college, university) president | 3 |
| 成长verb | chéng zhǎng | to mature | 5 |
| 家长noun | jiā zhǎng | head of a household | 4 |
| 漫长adjective | màn cháng | very long | 6 |
| 长期noun/adjective | cháng qī | long-term | 5 |
| 长久adjective | cháng jiǔ | long-time | 5 |
| 生长verb | shēng zhǎng | to grow | 5 |
| 增长verb | zēng zhǎng | to grow | 4 |
| 院长noun | yuàn zhǎng | the head of an institution whose name ends in 院 | 4 |
| 延长verb | yán cháng | to prolong | 5 |
| 长度noun | cháng dù | length | 5 |
| 特长noun | tè cháng | personal strength | 6 |
| 长途adjective | cháng tú | long distance | 5 |
| 长远adjective | cháng yuǎn | long-term | 5 |
| 长辈noun | zhǎng bèi | one's elders | 6 |
| 长处noun | cháng chù | good aspects | 5 |
| 长寿adjective | cháng shòu | longevity | 6 |
| 长短noun | cháng duǎn | length | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 长官noun | zhǎng guān | senior official |
| 长大 | zhǎng dà | to grow up |
| 船长noun | chuán zhǎng | captain (of a boat) |
| 市长noun | shì zhǎng | mayor |
| 局长noun | jú zhǎng | bureau chief |
| 探长 | tàn zhǎng | (police) detective |
| 部长noun | bù zhǎng | head of a (government etc) department |
| 州长 | zhōu zhǎng | governor (of a province or colony) |
| 说来话长 | shuō lái huà cháng | start explaining and it's a long story (idiom) |
| 长相 | zhǎng xiàng | appearance |
| 会长noun | huì zhǎng | president of a club, committee etc |
| 机长noun | jī zhǎng | (aviation) pilot-in-command |
| 专长noun | zhuān cháng | specialty |
| 酋长noun | qiú zhǎng | headman (of primitive people) |
| 长话短说 | cháng huà duǎn shuō | (idiom) to make a long story short |
长 appears in 116 compound words: 43 as the first character, 55 as the last, and 2 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 长 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (48)
take from the long to supplement the short (idiom); to offset each other's deficiencies; to complement each other
spirit reaches to the rainbow; full of noble aspiration and daring
take from the long to supplement the short (idiom); to offset each other's deficiencies; to complement each other
Showing 12 of 48 idioms containing 长.
Example Sentences
长字在日常生活中使用频率中等。
cháng zì zài rì cháng shēng huó zhōng shǐ yòng pín lǜ zhōng děng .
The character "长" is used moderately frequently in daily life.
新春长假尾声至 内地客最后冲刺
xīn chūn cháng jiǎ wěi shēng zhì nèi dì kè zuì hòu chōng cì
The end of the Chinese New Year holiday is the last sprint of mainland guests
阿曼:美伊26日再次瑞士谈判 伊朗外长:核问题仍可能外交解决
ā 曼 : měi yī 2 6 rì zài cì ruì shì tán pàn yī lǎng wài cháng : hé wèn tí réng kě néng wài jiāo jiě jué
Oman: The United States and Iran held talks again in Switzerland on the 26th Iranian Foreign Minister: The nuclear issue may still be resolved diplomatically
横眉冷看:一场长时间的战争
héng méi lěng kàn : yī chǎng cháng shí jiān de zhàn zhēng
Horizontal eyebrows look coldly: a long war
线下门店排长队 线上订单早高峰 京东七鲜春节双线共....
xiàn xià mén diàn pái cháng duì xiàn shàng dìng dān zǎo gāo fēng jīng dōng qī xiān chūn jié shuāng xiàn gòng . . . .
Long queues in offline stores, morning peak of online orders, JD Qixian Spring Festival double line total....
10万元财物失而复得,长沙火车站春运暖心守护旅客行..
1 0 wàn yuán cái wù shī ér fù dé , cháng shā huǒ chē zhàn chūn yùn nuǎn xīn shǒu hù lǚ kè háng . .
100,000 yuan of property was lost and recovered, and Changsha Railway Station warmly guarded the passengers during the Spring Festival:
你竟敢这样对长辈说话？！
Nǐ jìnggǎn zhèyàng duì zhǎngbèi shuōhuà?!
How dare you speak like that to your elders and betters!
好的。房间里长途电话可以直拨吗？
Hǎo de. fángjiān lǐ chángtúdiànhuà kěyǐ zhí bō ma?
Good. Can you make long distance calls from the room?
到那边需要多长时间？
Dào nàbian xūyào duō cháng shíjiān?
How long will it take to get there?
你是不是长岛家的亲戚？
Nǐ shì bù shì Chángdǎo jiā de qīnqi?
Are you related to the Nagashimas?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 长 (cháng) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 长 and 筑?
How many strokes does 长 have?
What is the radical of 长?
What are the components of 长?
What are common words containing 长?
What characters sound the same as 长 (cháng)?
Is 长 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 长 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.