Zhè xiǎohuǒzi jì nénggàn yòu jījí, zhēn shì méi shuō de.
This young man is capable and keen – you really can’t fault him.
Sentence #3709324 from Tatoeba · translation adapted
How 能干 is built
Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.
能néngcan
厶private · sī
⺼meat form of 肉 · ròu
匕spoon · bǐ
匕spoon · bǐ
Memory aidDrawn from a bear. It was borrowed for “can, be able to”.
干gàntree trunk
一one · yī
十ten · shí
Memory aidDrawn from a forked stick used as a weapon or shield. As a simplified character it also stands for 乾 “dry” and 幹 “to do”.
How to write 能干
能 10 strokes · 干 3 strokes
Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.
Stroke order chart for 能干 (nénggàn). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.
能干 (nénggàn) means “capable” or “competent”. It is an HSK 5 word.
Say it nénggàn: néng with a 2nd tone, then gàn with a 4th tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
In Traditional characters, used in Taiwan and Hong Kong, 能干 is written 能幹. The pronunciation is the same.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type nenggan with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 能干 from the suggestions. Typing nenggan into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
能干 is an HSK 5 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.
Turn words into conversations
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Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.
能néng2nd tone, rising
干gàn4th tone, falling
