柳 (liǔ): willow
柳 (liǔ) is a Chinese character meaning “willow.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 木 (semantic) and 卯 (phonetic). It ranks #1547 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 柳 tree. Its radical form 木 (tree) appears in many related characters such as 本 (běn, (bound form) root), 机 (jī, machine, opportunity), 条 (tiáo, strip).
Definitions
- willow
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 柳 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 柳树noun | liǔ shù | willow |
| 柳暗花明phrase | liǔ àn huā míng | lit. the willow trees make the shade, the flowers give the light (idiom) |
| 柳条noun | liǔ tiáo | willow twig |
| 柳林proper-noun | liǔ lín | see 柳林縣|柳林县 |
| 花柳病noun | huā liǔ bìng | sexually transmitted disease |
| 杨柳noun | yáng liǔ | willow tree |
| 垂柳noun | chuí liǔ | weeping willow (Salix babylonica) |
| 柳公权 | liǔ gōng quán | Liu Gongquan (778-865), Tang calligrapher |
| 柳条边proper-noun | liǔ tiáo biān | Willow palisade across Liaoning, 17th century barrier |
| 随风倒柳 | suí fēng dǎo liǔ | lit. a willow that bends with the wind |
| 寻花问柳phrase | xún huā wèn liǔ | lit. to enjoy the beautiful spring scenery (idiom) |
| 无心插柳phrase | wú xīn chā liǔ | (idiom) (of a good outcome) unanticipated |
| 柳南区 | liǔ nán qū | Liunan, a district of Liuzhou City 柳州市, Guangxi |
| 柳北区 | liǔ běi qū | Liubei, a district of Liuzhou City 柳州市, Guangxi |
| 柳子戏 | liǔ zi xì | Shandong opera |
柳 appears in 100 compound words: 44 as the first character, 14 as the last, and 42 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 柳 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (12)
impure woman, such as one who leads a promiscuous life, or one who has been abused and abandoned; fallen woman
an enchanting sight in springtime; at one's darkest hour, a glimmer of hope
(lit.) green willows and red flowers (idiom); (fig.) all the colors of spring
lit. a willow that bends with the wind; one with no fixed principles (idiom)
to enjoy the beautiful spring scenery; to visit prostitutes; to frequent brothels
impure woman, such as one who leads a promiscuous life, or one who has been abused and abandoned; fallen woman
an enchanting sight in springtime; at one's darkest hour, a glimmer of hope
(lit.) green willows and red flowers (idiom); (fig.) all the colors of spring
lit. a willow that bends with the wind; one with no fixed principles (idiom)
to enjoy the beautiful spring scenery; to visit prostitutes; to frequent brothels
Example Sentences
爷爷在门前种了一棵柳苗，现在已经长得很高了。
yé yé zài mén qián zhǒng le yī kē liǔ miáo , xiàn zài yǐ jīng cháng dé hěn gāo le .
Grandfather planted a willow sapling by the door, and now it has grown quite tall.
柳演锡来台“吃到1小吃”高度赞赏! 爆《机...
liǔ yǎn xī lái tái chī dào 1 xiǎo chī gāo dù zàn shǎng ! bào jī . . .
Yoo Yeon-seok Visits Taiwan, Tries "One Snack" and Gives It High Praise! Reveals *The...
赖清德派奇兵死守蒋万安? 柳采葳讽:郑丽君、徐国勇都难突破
lài qīng dé pài qí bīng sǐ shǒu 蒋 wàn ān ? liǔ cǎi 葳 fěng : zhèng lí jūn , xú guó yǒng dōu nán tū pò
Lai Qingde sent surprise soldiers to defend Jiang Wan'an? Liu Caiwei sarcastically said: Zheng Lijun and Xu Guoyong are difficult to break through
不羡鸳鸯只羡仙——读《柳毅传》
bù xiàn 鸳 鸯 zhī xiàn xiān — — dòu liǔ yì chuán
Don't envy the mandarin ducks, only envy the immortal - read "The Biography of Liu Yi"
...脆辣鸡腿饱餐减$10 麦乐鸡/麦炸鸡/猪柳蛋汉堡餐$29起
. . . cuì là jī tuǐ bǎo cān jiǎn 1 0 mài lè jī mài zhà jī zhū liǔ dàn hàn bǎo cān 2 9 qǐ
... Crispy and spicy chicken thighs are $10 off McNuggets/McFried Chicken/Pork Fillet and Egg Burger Meal from $29
探访宁平省广宫祠圣母柳杏像
tàn fǎng nìng píng shěng guǎng gōng 祠 shèng mǔ liǔ 杏 xiàng
Visit the statue of the Virgin Willow Xing at Quang Palace Shrine in Ninh Binh province
她用了许多柳橙来榨汁。
Tā yòng le xǔduō liǔchéng lái zhà zhī.
She squeezed the juice from many oranges.
是的，柳橙汁，麻烦你。
Shì de, liǔchéngzhī, máfan nǐ.
Yes, orange juice, please.
柳枝在微风中轻轻荡悠。
Liǔ zhī zài wēifēng zhōng qīngqīng dàng yōu.
The willow branches swayed gently in the breeze.
我可以吃这个柳橙吗？
Wǒ kěyǐ chī zhège liǔchéng ma?
May I eat this orange?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 柳 (liǔ) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 柳 and 贸?
How many strokes does 柳 have?
What is the radical of 柳?
What are the components of 柳?
What are common words containing 柳?
What characters sound the same as 柳 (liǔ)?
Is 柳 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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