缆 (lǎn): cable, hawser, to moor

缆 (lǎn) is a Chinese character meaning “cable.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 纟 (semantic) and 览 (phonetic). It ranks #2646 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).

Etymologically derived, 缆 thread. Its radical form 纟 (silk) appears in many related characters such as 系 (xì, to connect), 累 (lèi, tired), 绍 (shào, to continue).

Spoken pronunciation

HSK 7-9 Radical: 纟 silk12 strokesFrequency #2646纟 semantic 览 phonetic

Definitions

cable
hawser
to moor

Etymology & Origin

缆

pictophoneticthread

Decomposition: ⿰纟览 (layout: left-right)

Components:纟semantic 览phonetic

Stroke Order

Practice writing 缆 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.

Words & Compounds

Common Compounds

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
电缆noun	diàn lǎn	(electric) cable
缆车noun	lǎn chē	cable car
缆绳noun	lǎn shéng	cable
光缆noun	guāng lǎn	optical cable
线缆noun	xiàn lǎn	cable
缆索noun	lǎn suǒ	cable
钢缆	gāng lǎn	steel cable
电缆调制解调器	diàn lǎn tiáo zhì jiě tiáo qì	cable modem
电缆接头	diàn lǎn jiē tóu	cable gland
带状电缆	dài zhuàng diàn lǎn	ribbon cable
电缆塔	diàn lǎn tǎ	a pylon (for electric power line)
光纤电缆	guāng xiān diàn lǎn	optical fiber
同轴电缆noun	tóng zhóu diàn lǎn	coaxial cable
解缆	jiě lǎn	to untie a mooring rope
缆线	lǎn xiàn	cable

Total compounds

As first character

As last character

As middle character

缆 appears in 18 compound words: 33 as the first character, 50 as the last, and 17 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 缆 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.

电diàn

0.5604,734 co-occurrences

绳shéng

0.529246 co-occurrences

纤xiān

0.473110 co-occurrences

线xiàn

0.4381,278 co-occurrences

车chē

0.4351,562 co-occurrences

吊diào

0.43165 co-occurrences

断duàn

0.424444 co-occurrences

钢gāng

0.417180 co-occurrences

轴zhóu

0.417156 co-occurrences

输shū

0.410292 co-occurrences

Idioms & Chengyu (2)

光纤电缆guāng xiān diàn lǎnHSK 7+

optical fiber; optical cable

phrase

同轴电缆tóngzhóu diànlǎnHSK 7+

coaxial cable; coax

noun

Example Sentences

AI-Generated

缆字的写法很特别，让我印象深刻。

lǎn zì de xiě fǎ hěn tè bié , ràng wǒ yìn xiàng shēn kè .

The way the character "缆" is written is quite unique and has left a deep impression on me.

東森新聞Mar 2026

新/士林小货车吊臂未收勾电缆火花四射酿20户停电

xīn shì lín xiǎo huò chē diào bì wèi shōu gōu diàn lǎn huǒ huā sì shè niàng 2 0 hù tíng diàn

New/Shilin: Small Truck's Crane Hook Snags Cable; Sparks Fly, Causing Power Outage for 20 Households

Swi SwissinfoMar 2026

瑞士缆车:在中国创造世界之最,在墨西哥疏通城市...

ruì shì lǎn chē : zài zhōng guó chuàng zào shì jiè zhī zuì , zài mò xī gē shū tōng chéng shì . . .

Swiss Cable Cars: Setting World Records in China, Easing Urban Traffic in Mexico...

Vietnam+Feb 2026

AAE1海底光缆发生故障越南互联网仍保持稳定

A A E 1 hǎi de guāng lǎn fā shēng gù zhàng yuè nán hù lián wǎng réng bǎo chí wěn dìng

AAE1 submarine fiber optic cable failed Vietnam's internet remains stable

Investing 香港Feb 2026

港股异动 | 长飞光纤光缆(06869)盘中涨超5%再创新高光纤...

gǎng gǔ yì dòng cháng fēi guāng qiàn guāng lǎn ( 0 6 8 6 9 ) pán zhōng zhǎng chāo 5 zài chuàng xīn gāo guāng qiàn . . .

Hong Kong stock changes | Changfei Optical Fiber Cable (06869) rose more than 5% intraday and hit a new high optical fiber...

StheadlineFeb 2026

惊吓画面|12岁女童跌出滑雪缆车吊挂8米高空直坠救援网外受伤

jīng hè huà miàn 1 2 suì nǚ tóng diē chū huá xuě lǎn chē diào guà 8 mǐ gāo kōng zhí zhuì jiù yuán wǎng wài shòu shāng

A 12-year-old girl fell out of the ski lift and was suspended 8 meters above the rescue net and was injured

Tatoeba

拔下所有的电缆。

Báxià suǒyǒude diànlǎn.

Unplug all the cables.

Character Family

Frequently Asked Questions

What does 缆 (lǎn) mean in Chinese?

缆 (lǎn) primarily means "cable." It is classified as HSK Level 7-9, making it an expert-level character. It ranks #2646 in character frequency.

How many strokes does 缆 have?

缆 is written with 12 strokes. The correct stroke order matters for recognition and handwriting speed — practice with the animated guide above to build proper technique.

What is the radical of 缆?

The radical associated with 缆 is 纟 (silk). This radical appears in many characters related to silk.

What are the components of 缆?

缆 is composed of: 纟 (semantic), 览 (phonetic). Its IDS decomposition is ⿰纟览 with a left-right layout. Understanding the components helps with both memorization and recognizing related characters.

What are common words containing 缆?

Common words with 缆 include: 电缆 (diàn lǎn, "(electric) cable"); 缆车 (lǎn chē, "cable car"); 缆绳 (lǎn shéng, "cable"); 光缆 (guāng lǎn, "optical cable"); 线缆 (xiàn lǎn, "cable"). There are over 18 compound words containing this character.

What characters sound the same as 缆 (lǎn)?

Several characters share the pronunciation lǎn: 榄 ((bound form) olive), 揽 (to monopolize), 兰 (orchid (蘭花|兰花 Cymbidium goeringii)), 蓝 (blue), and 6 more. Context and tones help distinguish between them in speech and writing.

Is 缆 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?

Yes, 缆 is written the same way in both simplified and traditional Chinese.

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