皇 (huáng): emperor
皇 (huáng) is a Chinese character meaning “emperor.” Classified as HSK Level 6 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 白 (structural) and 王 (structural). It ranks #759 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 皇 a crown 白 on the head of the emperor 王. Its radical form 白 (white) appears in many related characters such as 白 (bái, white), 百 (bǎi, hundred), 的 (de, of).
Definitions
- emperor
Etymology & Origin
ideographicA crown 白 on the head of the emperor 王
Decomposition: ⿱白王 (layout: top-bottom)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 皇 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 皇
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 皇后noun | huáng hòu | empress |
| 皇家noun | huáng jiā | royal |
| 皇室noun | huáng shì | royal family |
| 教皇noun | jiào huáng | (Catholicism) pope |
| 皇冠noun | huáng guān | crown (headgear) |
| 女皇noun | nǚ huáng | empress |
| 皇宫noun | huáng gōng | imperial palace |
| 天皇noun | tiān huáng | Heavenly Sovereign, one of the three legendary sovereigns 三皇 |
| 皇上noun | huáng shang | the emperor |
| 皇族noun | huáng zú | the imperial family |
| 冠冕堂皇phrase | guān miǎn táng huáng | high-sounding |
| 沙皇noun | shā huáng | czar (loanword) |
| 皇太子noun | huáng tài zǐ | crown prince |
| 富丽堂皇phrase | fù lì táng huáng | (idiom) (of houses etc) sumptuous |
| 堂而皇之 | táng ér huáng zhī | overt |
皇 appears in 100 compound words: 46 as the first character, 24 as the last, and 30 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 皇 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (13)
dignified; upright; solemn; to seem honorable and just on the surface, but is not the case in reality
member of royalty or royal household; royal person; person having powerful connections
Alternative name for 秦始皇 (Qín Shǐhuáng, “Shi Huangdi, the first emperor of China”).
the tomb of the first emperor at Mt Li 驪山|骊山 near Xi'an (awaits excavation)
member of royalty or royal household; royal person; person having powerful connections
Showing 12 of 13 idioms containing 皇.
Example Sentences
这个皇字的意思与它的部首有关。
zhè gě huáng zì de yì sī yú tā de bù shǒu yǒu guān .
The meaning of the character "皇" is related to its radical.
欧联|皇家马德里主场球迷涉纳粹动作 称赛前被保安...
ōu lián huáng jiā mǎ dé lǐ zhǔ chǎng qiú mí shè nà cuì dòng zuò chèn sài qián bèi bǎo ān . . .
Europa League|Real Madrid's home fans were involved in Nazi actions and said they were guarded before the game...
体坛早报|意甲双雄命运迥异 皇马挫宾菲加晋级 曼联负债增加
tǐ tán zǎo bào yì jiǎ shuāng xióng mìng yùn 迥 yì huáng mǎ cuò bīn 菲 jiā jìn jí 曼 lián fù zhài zēng jiā
Sports Morning Post|Serie A duo have very different fates, Real Madrid defeated Benfica to advance, Manchester United's debt increased
正月初九玉皇大帝生日8大禁忌 尤其别做一事否则恐“穷...
zhèng yuè chū jiǔ yù huáng dà dì shēng rì 8 dà jīn jì yóu qí bié zuò yī shì fǒu zé kǒng qióng . . .
On the ninth day of the first lunar month, the Jade Emperor's birthday 8 taboos especially don't do anything, otherwise you may be "poor...
制药设备热起来 皇将开年营收就翻倍成长
zhì yào shè bèi rè qǐ lái huáng jiāng kāi nián yíng shōu jiù fān bèi chéng cháng
Pharmaceutical equipment is heating up, and the revenue of the emperor will double at the beginning of the year
...宅跟北方煮锅贴过年 圈中老公杜燕歌系清朝皇族后裔
. . . zhái gēn běi fāng zhǔ guō tiē guò nián juān zhōng lǎo gōng dù yān gē xì qīng cháo huáng zú hòu yì
... Cooking potstickers in the north for the New Year, her husband Du Yange is a descendant of the Qing Dynasty royal family
从来就没有什么救世主， 也不靠神仙皇帝！
Cónglái jiù méiyǒushénme Jiùshìzhǔ, yě bù kào shénxiān huángdì!
There has never been a savior nor an immortal emperor to rely on.
皇后的后冠是用黄金铸成的。
Huánghòu de hòu guān shì yòng huángjīn zhùchéng de.
The Queen's crown was made of gold.
在空无一物的地方, 皇帝再大的权力也无用。
Zài kōng wú yī wù de dìfang, huángdì zài dà de quánlì yě wúyòng.
In an empty place, an emperor has no power.
苏在皇家饭店登记投宿。
Sū zài huángjiā fàndiàn dēngjì tóusù.
Sue checked in at the Royal Hotel.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 皇 (huáng) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 皇 have?
What is the radical of 皇?
What are the components of 皇?
What are common words containing 皇?
What characters sound the same as 皇 (huáng)?
Is 皇 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 皇 with real-time feedback
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