阮 (ruǎn): surname Ruan, ruan, a four-stringed Chinese lute

阮 (ruǎn) is a Chinese character meaning “ruan, a four-stringed chinese lute.” Outside the HSK 3.0 syllabus (CLEC 2022), it is composed of 阝 (structural) and 元 (phonetic). It ranks #4300 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).

Etymologically derived, 阮 is a compound character. Its radical form 阝 (mound) appears in many related characters such as 那 (nà, (specifier) that), 都 (dōu, all), 院 (yuàn, courtyard).

Spoken pronunciation

Radical: 阝 mound6 strokesFrequency #4300阝 structural 元 phonetic

Definitions

surname Ruan
ruan, a four-stringed Chinese lute

Etymology & Origin

阮

pictophoneticThis character is a compound form.

Decomposition: ⿰阝元 (layout: left-right)

Components:阝structural 元phonetic

Stroke Order

Practice writing 阮 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
大阮noun	dà ruǎn	daruan or bass lute, like pipa 琵琶 and zhongruan 中阮 but bigger and lower range
中阮noun	zhōng ruǎn	zhongruan or alto lute, like pipa 琵琶 but bigger and lower range
阮安	ruǎn ān	Nguyen An (1381-1453), aka Ruan An, Vietnamese architect and engineer, principal designer of the Forbidden City
阮崇武	ruǎn chóng wǔ	Ruan Chongwu (1933-), third governor of Hainan
阮元	ruǎn yuán	scholar-official in the Qing dynasty (1764-1849)
阮晋勇	ruǎn jìn yǒng	Nguyễn Tấn Dũng (1949-), prime minister of Vietnam 2006-2016
阮琴	ruǎn qín	see 阮
阮咸noun	ruǎn xián	see 阮

Total compounds

As first character

As last character

As middle character

阮 appears in 8 compound words: 75 as the first character, 25 as the last, and 0 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.

Example Sentences

AI-Generated

阮字的写法很特别，让我印象深刻。

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

The way the character "Ruan" is written is quite unique, and it really left an impression on me.

中国新闻网·文化Aug 2026

阮玲玉形象的经典化，也离不开期刊的持续建构。

Ruǎn 玲 yù xíng xiàng de jīng diǎn huà , yě lí bù kāi qī kān de chí xù jiàn gòu .

The canonization of Ruan Lingyu’s image would not have been possible without the ongoing efforts of periodicals to shape it.

Vietnam+Apr 2026

顺化市推进阮朝时期系列重要工程修复工作

shùn huà shì tuī jìn Ruǎn cháo shí qī xì liè chóng yāo gōng chéng xiū fù gōng zuò

Hue City is moving forward with the restoration of a series of important projects from the Nguyen Dynasty

StheadlineMar 2026

林正峰拍内地短剧向日薪5万进发阮嘉敏日拍廿粒钟搵命搏顶级短剧明星年薪破...

lín zhèng fēng pāi nèi dì duǎn jù xiàng rì xīn 5 wàn jìn fā Ruǎn jiā mǐn rì pāi 廿 lì zhōng 搵 mìng bó dǐng jí duǎn jù míng xīng nián xīn pò . . .

Lam Ching-fung Aims for a Daily Rate of 50,000 in Mainland Short Series; Yuen Ka-man Works 20-Hour Days in a Life-or-Death Struggle; Top Short Series Stars Earn Over...

Hk01.comMar 2026

阮经天小20岁女友正面曝!甜蜜逛街十指紧扣...

Ruǎn jīng tiān xiǎo 2 0 suì nǚ yǒu zhèng miàn pù ! tián mì guàng jiē shí zhǐ jǐn kòu . . .

Jing-Tian Ruan's girlfriend, who is 20 years his junior, has been spotted in public! The couple was seen shopping hand-in-hand...

Am730Mar 2026

阮政峰离开效力14年TVB 惊抑郁所以向外...

Ruǎn zhèng fēng lí kāi xiào lì 1 4 nián T V B jīng yì yù suǒ yǐ xiàng wài . . .

Ruan Zhengfeng leaves TVB after 14 years; reportedly suffering from depression, he has turned to...

Character Family

阝 Radical Family — Characters sharing the mound radical

那nà 都dōu 院yuàn 除chú 际jì 险xiǎn 阻zǔ 陷xiàn 邻lín 陌mò

Related Characters

那nà 都dōu 院yuàn 邻lín 除chú 险xiǎn 际jì 阻zǔ 陌mò 陷xiàn

Frequently Asked Questions

What does 阮 (ruǎn) mean in Chinese?

阮 (ruǎn) primarily means "ruan, a four-stringed chinese lute." It is not part of the HSK 3.0 syllabus. It ranks #4300 in character frequency.

What's the difference between 阮 and 完?

阮 (ruǎn) and 完 (wán) are often confused. confusable. The key distinguishing feature: 阝 vs 宀 (same 元 component).

How many strokes does 阮 have?

阮 is written with 6 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 阮?

The radical associated with 阮 is 阝 (mound). This radical appears in many characters related to mound.

What are the components of 阮?

阮 is composed of: 阝 (structural), 元 (phonetic). Its IDS decomposition is ⿰阝元 with a left-right layout. Understanding the components helps with both memorization and recognizing related characters.

What are common words containing 阮?

Common words with 阮 include: 大阮 (dà ruǎn, "daruan or bass lute, like pipa 琵琶 and zhongruan 中阮 but bigger and lower range"); 中阮 (zhōng ruǎn, "zhongruan or alto lute, like pipa 琵琶 but bigger and lower range"); 阮安 (ruǎn ān, "Nguyen An (1381-1453), aka Ruan An, Vietnamese architect and engineer, principal designer of the Forbidden City"); 阮崇武 (ruǎn chóng wǔ, "Ruan Chongwu (1933-), third governor of Hainan"); 阮元 (ruǎn yuán, "scholar-official in the Qing dynasty (1764-1849)"). There are over 8 compound words containing this character.

Is 阮 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?

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

Practice writing 阮 with real-time feedback

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