裂 (liè): to split, to crack
裂 (liè) is a Chinese character meaning “to split, to crack.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 列 (phonetic) and 衣 (semantic). It ranks #1309 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 裂 cloth. Its radical form 衤 (clothing) appears in many related characters such as 衣 (yī, clothing), 表 (biǎo, exterior surface), 装 (zhuāng, dress, install).
Definitions
- to split, to crack
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 裂 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 裂缝 | liè fèng | crack |
| 分裂 | fēn liè | to split up |
| 破裂 | pò liè | to burst |
| 撕裂 | sī liè | to tear |
| 裂开 | liè kāi | to split open |
| 裂痕 | liè hén | crack |
| 断裂 | duàn liè | fracture |
| 爆裂 | bào liè | to rupture |
| 裂口 | liè kǒu | breach |
| 碎裂 | suì liè | to disintegrate |
| 决裂 | jué liè | to rupture |
| 身败名裂 | shēn bài míng liè | to lose one's standing |
| 裂纹 | liè wén | crack |
| 裂变 | liè biàn | (physics) to undergo nuclear fission |
| 开裂 | kāi liè | to split open |
裂 appears in 94 compound words: 26 as the first character, 51 as the last, and 23 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 裂 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (10)
heaven falls and earth rends (idiom); rocked by a major disaster; fig. violent revolution; major social upheaval
heaven falls and earth rends (idiom); rocked by a major disaster; fig. violent revolution; major social upheaval
Example Sentences
墙壁出现裂缝，需要及时修补，否则会越来越严重。
Qiángbì chūxiàn lièfèng, xūyào jíshí xiūbǔ, fǒuzé huì yuèláiyuè yánzhòng.
Cracks have appeared in the wall; they need to be repaired promptly, otherwise they will become more serious.
市场泡沫破裂后黄金RWA崛起:维塔金为何在熊市中脱颖...
shì chǎng pāo mò pò liè hòu huáng jīn R W A jué qǐ : wéi tǎ jīn wéi hé zài xióng shì zhōng tuō yǐng . . .
The rise of gold RWA after the bursting of the market bubble: why did Vita Gold stand out in the bear market...
...兰航空客机在飞行途中发现,挡风玻璃突然开裂!
. . . lán háng kōng kè jī zài fēi háng tú zhōng fā xiàn , dǎng fēng bō lí tū rán kāi liè !
... The Lan Airlines passenger plane found that the windshield suddenly cracked during the flight!
...7歲男健身突胸痛腫脹 竟是罕見「胸大肌斷裂」
. . . 歲 nán jiàn shēn tū xiōng tòng 腫 脹 jìng shì hǎn 見 xiōng dà jī 斷 liè
7-year-old boy experiences chest pain and swelling during a workout; it turns out to be a rare pectoral muscle rupture.
...稟申請破產 懶理兒子風流事母子關係徹底決裂
. . . 稟 shēn 請 pò 產 懶 lǐ 兒 zǐ 風 liú shì mǔ zǐ 關 係 徹 de 決 liè
Filed for bankruptcy, ignoring her son's womanizing ways—mother-son relationship completely severed.
大黃狗遭3樓丟下!肝臟碎裂 民眾救援心疼
dà 黃 gǒu zāo 樓 丟 xià ! gān 臟 suì liè mín 眾 jiù yuán xīn téng
Yellow dog thrown from 3rd floor! Liver Shattered, Citizen Rescue Heartbreaking
一条主要水管被地震震裂了。
Yī tiáo zhǔyào shuǐguǎn bèi dìzhèn zhèn liè le.
The water mains burst due to the earthquake.
仔细检查后发现，该头骨被重击碎裂。
Zǐxì jiǎnchá hòu fāxiàn, gāi tóugǔ bèi zhòngjī suìliè.
After careful examination, it can be seen that the skull was smashed to pieces.
水从破裂的水管倾泻而出。
Shuǐ cóng pòliè de shuǐguǎn qīngxiè ér chū.
Water poured from the broken pipe.
每年冬天，我的嘴唇都会干裂。
Měinián dōngtiān, wǒ de zuǐchún dōu huì gānliè.
I get chapped lips every winter.
Character Family
衤 Radical Family — Characters sharing the clothing radical
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 裂 (liè) mean in Chinese?
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What characters sound the same as 裂 (liè)?
Is 裂 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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