耳 (ěr): ear
耳 (ěr) is a Chinese character meaning “ear.” Classified as HSK Level 3 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 二 (structural). It ranks #887 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically pictographic, 耳 an ear. Its radical form 耳 (ear) appears in many related characters such as 闻 (wén, to hear, to smell), 职 (zhí, job, duty), 联 (lián, connect, unite).
Definitions
- ear
Etymology & Origin
pictographicAn ear
Stroke Order
Practice writing 耳 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 耳
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 耳光 | ěr guāng | a slap on the face |
| 耳熟 | ěr shú | to sound familiar |
| 耳目 | ěr mù | eyes and ears |
| 耳语 | ěr yǔ | to whisper in sb's ear |
| 刺耳 | cì ěr | ear-piercing |
| 耳闻 | ěr wén | to hear of |
| 耳塞 | ěr sāi | earplug |
| 亲耳 | qīn ěr | with one's own ears |
| 悦耳 | yuè ěr | sweet-sounding |
| 波义耳 | bō yì ěr | Boyle (name) |
| 耳垂 | ěr chuí | earlobe |
| 耳边风 | ěr biān fēng | lit. wind past your ear |
| 耳屎 | ěr shǐ | earwax |
| 焦耳 | jiāo ěr | (loanword) joule |
| 内耳 | nèi ěr | inner ear |
耳 appears in 100 compound words: 57 as the first character, 33 as the last, and 10 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 耳 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (26)
lit. ears pure and peaceful (idiom); to stay away from the filth and unrest of the world
heard a million times, to the point where one can recite it in one's sleep; well-worn (phrase)
to hear with one's ears and see with one's eyes; to personally see and hear
bowed head and ears glued (idiom); docile and obedient; at sb's beck and call
to hear with one's ears and see with one's eyes; to personally see and hear
bowed head and ears glued (idiom); docile and obedient; at sb's beck and call
Showing 12 of 26 idioms containing 耳.
Example Sentences
耳机可以让我们在公共场合听音乐而不打扰别人。
Ěrjī kěyǐ ràng wǒmen zài gōnggòng chǎnghé tīng yīnyuè ér bù dǎrǎo biérén.
Headphones allow us to listen to music in public without disturbing others.
银耳做熟后能隔夜吃吗?隔夜银耳的食用注意事项
yín ěr zuò shú hòu néng gé yè chī ma ? gé yè yín ěr de shí yòng zhù yì shì xiàng
Can white fungus be eaten overnight after cooking? Precautions for eating white fungus overnight
土耳其绑架案—中国商人遭撕票 传10跨海杀人...
tǔ ěr qí bǎng jià àn — zhōng guó shāng rén zāo sī piào chuán 1 0 kuà hǎi shā rén . . .
Turkish kidnapping case - Chinese businessman tore up ticket rumored to have killed 10 people across the sea...
德黑兰高调备战 情报圈耳语大增
dé hēi lán gāo diào bèi zhàn qíng bào juān ěr yǔ dà zēng
Tehran's high-profile preparations for war have greatly increased the whispers of the intelligence community
欧洲头条丨慕尼黑的沉默,比争吵更刺耳
ōu zhōu tóu tiáo 丨 mù ní hēi de chén mò , bǐ zhēng chǎo gēng cī ěr
Europe Headlines丨Munich's Silence Is More Deafening Than Any Clash
拜耳股价在法兰克福下跌5.8%
bài ěr gǔ jiè zài fǎ lán kè fú xià diē .
Bayer shares fell 5.8% in Frankfurt.
海伦·凯勒眼盲、耳聋并且不能说话。
Hǎilún · kǎi lè yǎn máng, ěrlóng bìngqiě bù néng shuōhuà.
Helen Keller was blind, deaf and mute.
你想把耳朵露出来吗？
Nǐ xiǎng bǎ ěrduo lùchū lái ma?
Would you like your ears to show?
那位女士说土耳其语吗？
Nà wèi nǚshì shuō Tǔ'ěrqíyǔ ma?
Does the lady speak Turkish?
盲人的耳朵通常十分灵敏。
Mángrén de ěrduo tōngcháng shífēn língmǐn.
A blind person's hearing is often very acute.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
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Is 耳 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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