褐

hè
adjective #17,868

Meanings

  1. 1 brown
  2. 2 dark color

Examples

HSK 4
Tā chuān le yí jiàn hèsè de wàitào.
She wore a brown coat.
HSK 7-9
Qiūtiān de shùyè biànchéng le hèsè.
The autumn leaves turned brown.

Tips

usage
褐 is rarely used alone - it's almost always 褐色 (hèsè, brown color). Other browns: 棕色 (zōngsè, tan/brown), 咖啡色 (kāfēisè, coffee brown).

Components

radical
衤 yī
clothing (left-side form)
衤 is the clothing radical 衣 in left-side form. It tags 褐 as a fabric and garment word, grouping it with 衫 (shirt), 袖 (sleeve), and 袍 (robe) - originally a coarse hempen cloak worn by the poor, hence the brown color the word now names.
phonetic
曷 hé
how; why (literary)
曷 supplies the reading, drifting from hé to hè with only a tone shift. The same phonetic appears in 渴 (thirsty), 喝 (drink), and 揭 (lift), all clustered around the he syllable family with related velar onsets.

Stroke Order

褐 hè