封 (fēng): to confer, to grant, to bestow a title
封 (fēng) is a Chinese character meaning “to confer.” Classified as HSK Level 3 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 圭 (structural) and 寸 (structural). It ranks #871 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 封 to seal 寸 something with a handful of mortar 土. Its radical form 寸 (inch) appears in many related characters such as 对 (duì, right), 导 (dǎo, to transmit), 将 (jiāng, will).
Definitions
- to confer
- to grant
- to bestow a title
Etymology & Origin
ideographicTo seal 寸 something with a handful of mortar 土
Decomposition: ⿰圭寸 (layout: left-right)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 封 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 封
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 封面noun | fēng miàn | cover (of a publication) |
| 封锁verb | fēng suǒ | to blockade |
| 密封verb | mì fēng | to seal up |
| 封杀verb | fēng shā | to shut out |
| 封存verb | fēng cún | to sequester |
| 查封verb | chá fēng | to sequester |
| 封口verb | fēng kǒu | to keep one's lips sealed |
| 封锁线noun | fēng suǒ xiàn | blockade line |
| 原封不动 | yuán fēng bù dòng | (lit.) the original seal has not been disturbed (idiom) |
| 尘封verb | chén fēng | covered in dust |
| 册封verb | cè fēng | to confer a title upon sb |
| 封条noun | fēng tiáo | seal |
| 自封verb | zì fēng | to proclaim oneself (sth) |
| 开封verb | kāi fēng | to open (sth that has been sealed) |
| 封顶verb | fēng dǐng | to put a roof (on a building) |
封 appears in 100 compound words: 66 as the first character, 25 as the last, and 9 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 封 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (9)
to offer official positions and material benefits in order to buy people's allegiance
(idiom) to bestow a title on the wife of a deserving official and make his son heir to his titles
to restrict access to a mountainous area to promote natural forest regeneration
to restrict access to a mountainous area to promote natural forest regeneration
Example Sentences
老师教我们封字的发音和笔顺。
lǎo shī jiào wǒ men fēng zì de fā yīn hé bǐ shùn .
The teacher taught us the pronunciation and stroke order of the character "封."
台南新市“闹元宵” 明起连6天封街登场
tái nán xīn shì nào yuán xiāo míng qǐ lián 6 tiān fēng jiē dēng chǎng
Tainan New City's "Lantern Festival" will be closed for 6 consecutive days from tomorrow
...|里安纳度“甜茶”大热倒灶 英国演员爆冷封帝 《一战再战》成大赢家(附得奖名单)
. . . lǐ ān nà dù tián chá dà rè dǎo zào yīng guó yǎn yuán bào lěng fēng dì yī zhàn zài zhàn chéng dà yíng jiā ( fù dé jiǎng míng dān )
...| Leonardo's "sweet tea" is a hit, the British actor is upset, and "World War I and Fight Again" becomes a big winner (with a list of winners)
台积ADR封关期间涨逾2%...台股金马年开红盘 蓄...
tái jī A D R fēng guān qī jiān zhǎng yú 2 . . . tái gǔ jīn mǎ nián kāi hóng pán xù . . .
TSMC ADR rose more than 2% during customs closure... Taiwan stocks opened in the red market in the Year of the Golden Horse...
...政府“以色列的共犯” 《坠后真相》女星再封后
. . . zhèng fǔ yǐ sè liè de gòng fàn zhuì hòu zhēn xiāng nǚ xīng zài fēng hòu
... The government's "accomplice in Israel" "The Truth After the Fall" actress was re-sealed
微视频|冀望米兰·一封家书——致河北运动员何凯乐
wēi shì pín 冀 wàng mǐ lán yī fēng jiā shū — — zhì hé běi yùn dòng yuán hé kǎi lè
Micro video|Hope Milan A letter from home - to Hebei athlete He Kaile
这封信是玛丽写的吗？
Zhè fēng xìn shì Mǎlì xiě de ma?
Was this letter written by Mary?
可以帮我寄这封信吗？
Kěyǐ bāng wǒ jì zhè fēng xìn ma?
Would you mind mailing this letter for me?
这封信一定要用英文写吗？
Zhè fēng xìn yīdìngyào yòng Yīngwén xiě ma?
Must this letter be written in English?
你帮我把这两封信寄掉好吗？
Nǐ bāng wǒ bǎ zhè liǎng fēng xìn jì diào hǎo ma?
Help me send out these two letters, all right?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 封 (fēng) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 封 have?
What is the radical of 封?
What are the components of 封?
What are common words containing 封?
What characters sound the same as 封 (fēng)?
Is 封 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 封 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.