缕

縷
lǚ
measure word HSK 7-9 #15,983

Meanings

  1. 1 strand; thread; wisp
  2. 2 classifier for wisps of smoke, strands of hair, threads

Examples

HSK 4
Yìlǚ yángguāng cóng chuānghu zhào jìnlái.
A ray of sunlight shone through the window.
HSK 6
Kōngqì zhōng piāo zhe yìlǚ dàndàn de xiāngwèi.
A faint wisp of fragrance drifted through the air.

Tips

usage
缕 is a literary measure word for thin, delicate things: 一缕烟 (a wisp of smoke), 一缕头发 (a strand of hair), 一缕阳光 (a ray of sunlight). 千丝万缕 means 'intricately interconnected.'

Components

radical
纟 sī
silk; thread
纟 is the left-side simplified form of 糸 (silk). A 缕 is a strand or wisp of thread, and the silk radical is the literal anchor. From thread the meaning extends to anything wispy and trailing - 一缕烟 (a wisp of smoke), 一缕阳光 (a thread of sunlight).
phonetic
娄 lóu
drag; hollow; surname
娄 (lóu) supplies the sound, drifted to lǚ. 娄 is the simplified phonetic - traditional 縷 used 婁. Same simplified phonetic powers a tidy family: 楼 (building), 搂 (embrace), 喽 (sentence particle), 篓 (basket), 偻 (hunchback).

Stroke Order

缕 lǚ