链 (liàn): chain

链 (liàn) is a Chinese character meaning “chain.” Classified as HSK Level 6 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 钅 (structural) and 连 (structural). It ranks #2063 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).

Etymologically derived, 链 metal 钅 that joins 连; 连 also provides the pronunciation. Its radical form 钅 (metal) appears in many related characters such as 钱 (qián, money), 错 (cuò, wrong, mistake), 钟 (zhōng, clock, bell).

Spoken pronunciation

Definitions

  1. chain

Etymology & Origin

链

ideographicMetal 钅 that joins 连; 连 also provides the pronunciation

Decomposition: ⿰钅连 (layout: left-right)

Stroke Order

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12

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

Words & Compounds

HSK Vocabulary with 链

WordPinyinMeaningHSK
项链nounxiàng liànnecklace6
链接verbliàn jiēto link6

Common Compounds

WordPinyinMeaning
拉链nounlā liànzipper
链子nounliàn zichain
铁链nountiě liàniron chain
锁链nounsuǒ liànchains
食物链nounshí wù liànfood chain
链条nounliàn tiáochain
链球菌nounliàn qiú jūnstreptococcus (genus of bacteria)
铰链nounjiǎo liànhinge
脚链nounjiǎo liànankle bracelet
防滑链fáng huá liànsnow chain (for a vehicle tire)
数据链路连接标识shù jù liàn lù lián jiē biāo zhìdata link connection identifier (DLCI)
外部链接wài bù liàn jiēexternal link (on a website)
链式反应nounliàn shì fǎn yìngchain reaction
链式裂变反应liàn shì liè biàn fǎn yìngchain reaction of nuclear fission
生物链shēng wù liànfood chain
71
Total compounds
23
As first character
49
As last character
28
As middle character

链 appears in 71 compound words: 23 as the first character, 49 as the last, and 28 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 链 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.

接jiē
0.808316,256 co-occurrences
外wài
0.747300,844 co-occurrences
部bù
0.693301,390 co-occurrences
叙xù
0.42912 co-occurrences
霉méi
0.398372 co-occurrences
锁suǒ
0.362760 co-occurrences
菌jūn
0.3611,369 co-occurrences
供gōng
0.3511,490 co-occurrences
券quàn
0.35019 co-occurrences
概gài
0.34311 co-occurrences

Idioms & Chengyu (1)

链式反应liànshì fǎnyìngHSK 6+

chain reaction

noun

Example Sentences

AI-Generated

这条供应链非常稳定,可以确保原材料及时到货。

Zhè tiáo gōngyìngliàn fēicháng wěndìng, kěyǐ quèbǎo yuáncáiliào jíshí dào huò.

This supply chain is very stable and can ensure timely delivery of raw materials.

NewsFeb 2026

力积电 变身AI供应链整合者

lì jī diàn biàn shēn gōng yīng liàn zhěng gě zhě

Lijie Electronics Transforms into an AI Supply Chain Integrator

NewsFeb 2026

国金证券:国内制药供应链景气度上行持续 建议把握CXO行业两大核...

guó jīn zhèng quàn guó nèi zhì yào gōng yīng liàn jǐng qì dù shàng háng chí xù jiàn yì bǎ wò háng yè liǎng dà hé . . .

GF Securities: Domestic Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Momentum Continues to Improve; Recommend Seizing Two Core Opportunities in the CXO Industry...

NewsFeb 2026

...来的长期叙事变化 关注税率下降对A股出口链影响

. . . lái de cháng qī xù shì biàn huà guān zhù shuì lǜ xià jiàng duì gǔ chū kǒu liàn yǐng xiǎng

Long-term narrative shifts emerging Focus on the impact of declining tax rates on A-share export chains

Tatoeba

这条项链是我奶奶送给我的。

Zhè tiáo xiàngliàn shì wǒ nǎinai sònggěi wǒ de.

My nan gave me this necklace.

Tatoeba

无产者在这个革命中失去的只是锁链。

Wúchǎnzhě zài zhège gémìng zhōng shīqù de zhǐ shì suǒliàn.

The proletarians lose nothing in this revolution but their chains.

Tatoeba

他拉开裤子的拉链。

Tā lākāi kùzi de lāliàn.

He unzipped his pants.

Tatoeba

在沙发下,汤姆找到了玛丽的项链。

Zài shāfā xià, Tāngmǔ zhǎodào le Mǎlì de xiàngliàn.

Tom found Mary's necklace under the sofa.

Tatoeba

我至今还珍惜你十年前给我的项链。

Wǒ zhìjīn hái zhēnxī nǐ shí nián qián gěi wǒ de xiàngliàn.

I still cherish the necklace you gave me ten years ago.

Tatoeba

不要点击那个链接。

Bùyào diǎnjī nàge liànjiē.

Don't click on that link.

Character Family

Homophones — Characters pronounced liàn

Frequently Asked Questions

What does 链 (liàn) mean in Chinese?
链 (liàn) primarily means "chain." It is classified as HSK Level 6, making it an advanced character. It ranks #2063 in character frequency.
How many strokes does 链 have?
链 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 链?
The radical associated with 链 is 钅 (metal). This radical appears in many characters related to metal.
What are the components of 链?
链 is composed of: 钅 (structural), 连 (structural). Its IDS decomposition is ⿰钅连 with a left-right layout. Understanding the components helps with both memorization and recognizing related characters.
What are common words containing 链?
Common words with 链 include: 项链 (xiàng liàn, "necklace"); 拉链 (lā liàn, "zipper"); 链子 (liàn zi, "chain"); 铁链 (tiě liàn, "iron chain"); 锁链 (suǒ liàn, "chains"). There are over 71 compound words containing this character.
What characters sound the same as 链 (liàn)?
Several characters share the pronunciation liàn: 联 (connect, unite), 连 (to connect, even), 脸 (face), 练 (to practice), and 6 more. Context and tones help distinguish between them in speech and writing.
Is 链 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
No. The simplified form is 链 and the traditional form is 鏈.

Practice writing 链 with real-time feedback

Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.

Character data sourced from Unihan (Unicode Consortium), SUBTLEX-CH frequency corpus (Cai & Brysbaert, 2010), and Make Me a Hanzi (stroke data). Collocation strength measured via NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information). Verified by the HanziFeed linguistics team.

HSK classification follows the HSK 3.0 Standard (Center for Language Education and Cooperation, CLEC, 2022 revision). Idiom data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).

Data last verified: March 2026.