围 (wéi): to encircle, to surround, all around, to wear by wrapping around (scarf, shawl)
围 (wéi) is a Chinese character meaning “to encircle.” Classified as HSK Level 4 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 囗 (semantic) and 韦 (phonetic). It ranks #576 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 围 enclosure. Its radical form 囗 (enclosure) appears in many related characters such as 四 (sì, four), 回 (huí, to circle), 国 (guó, country).
Definitions
- to encircle
- to surround
- all around
- to wear by wrapping around (scarf, shawl)
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 围 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 围
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 周围noun | zhōu wéi | environs | 4 |
| 范围noun | fàn wéi | range | 5 |
| 围巾noun | wéi jīn | scarf | 5 |
| 围绕verb | wéi rào | to revolve around | 5 |
| 氛围noun | fēn wéi | ambience | 6 |
| 围棋noun | wéi qí | the game of Go | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 包围 | bāo wéi | to surround |
| 外围 | wài wéi | surrounding |
| 围栏 | wéi lán | fencing |
| 围裙 | wéi qún | apron |
| 围墙 | wéi qiáng | perimeter wall |
| 围攻 | wéi gōng | to besiege |
| 入围 | rù wéi | to get past the qualifying round |
| 围住 | wéi zhù | to surround |
| 解围 | jiě wéi | to lift a siege |
| 围捕 | wéi bǔ | to fish by casting a net |
| 突围 | tū wéi | to break a siege |
| 围观 | wéi guān | to stand in a circle and watch |
| 重围 | chóng wéi | to redouble a siege |
| 胸围 | xiōng wéi | chest measurement |
| 围困 | wéi kùn | to besiege |
围 appears in 70 compound words: 56 as the first character, 31 as the last, and 13 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 围 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (4)
Showing 3 of 4 idioms containing 围.
Example Sentences
孩子们围坐在老师身边，听她讲故事。
Háizimen wéi zuò zài lǎoshī shēnbiān, tīng tā jiǎng gùshi.
The children sat around the teacher, listening to her tell stories.
...商场欲跳楼轻生 男子出手相救反遭对方家属围骂
. . . shāng chǎng yù tiào lóu qīng shēng nán zǐ chū shǒu xiāng jiù fǎn zāo duì fāng jiā shǔ wéi mà
[Translation pending - quota exceeded]
天水围货车疑越线撼拖头 司机一度被困半昏迷
tiān shuǐ wéi huò chē yí yuè xiàn hàn tuō tóu sī jī yī dù bèi kùn bàn hūn mí
Tin Shui Wai truck suspected of crossing the line and shaking the tractor, the driver was trapped in a semi-coma for a while
美关税双刃 我突围之道
měi guān shuì shuāng 刃 wǒ tū wéi zhī dào
The double-edged sword of the US tariff is my way to break through
TVB视帝黄宗泽晒童年照吸引4千万人围观 6岁潮男Chok样曝光获赞“母胎帅哥...
shì dì huáng zōng zé shài tóng nián zhào xī yǐn qiān wàn rén wéi guàn suì cháo nán yàng pù guāng huò zàn mǔ tāi shuài gē . . .
TVB Viewers' Choice Award Winner Bosco Wong Shares Childhood Photo, Drawing 40 Million Views 6-Year-Old Fashionista's Cool Pose Goes Viral, Dubbed "Born-with-it Handsome..."
珍惜生命|天水围天晴邨28岁男堕楼 当场证实不治
zhēn xī shēng mìng tiān shuǐ wéi tiān qíng 邨 suì nán duò lóu dāng chǎng zhèng shí bù zhì
Cherish Life | 28-Year-Old Man Falls to His Death at Tin Ching Estate, Tin Shui Wai; Declared Dead at Scene
你认为汤姆的腰围是多少？
Nǐ rènwéi Tāngmǔ de yāowéi shì duōshao?
What do you think Tom's waist size is?
你为什么戴那条围巾？
Nǐ wèishénme dài nà tiáo wéijīn?
Why are you wearing that scarf?
汤姆在哪儿买的那个围巾呀？
Tāngmǔ zài nǎr mǎi de nàge wéijīn ya?
Where did Tom buy that scarf?
住宅围栏应该多高？
Zhùzhái wéilán yīnggāi duō gāo?
How high should a home fence be?
Character Family
囗 Radical Family — Characters sharing the enclosure radical
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 围 (wéi) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 围 and 讳?
How many strokes does 围 have?
What is the radical of 围?
What are the components of 围?
What are common words containing 围?
What characters sound the same as 围 (wéi)?
Is 围 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 围 with real-time feedback
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