The sun is going down, shop lights turn on, and you are finally heading home after a long day.
晚
晚 (wǎn) Chinese Character: late; evening; night
When daylight becomes sunset, the day is late: 晚.
Practice 晚 in the interactive lessonChinese character story: Daylight Fades into Evening
晚 (wǎn) covers two closely related ideas: “evening” and “late.” Imagine the sun sinking and the sky becoming darker. That scene tells you the day is in its later part. Use 晚上 for “evening” or “at night,” as in 晚上看书, “read in the evening.” Use 晚 after a verb to describe lateness: 来晚了 means “arrived late.” Two useful greetings are 晚上好, “Good evening,” and 晚安, “Good night.” Do not translate 晚 with only one English word; check whether the sentence describes a time period or an action that happened later than expected. Say wǎn with the third tone. Its 日 radical also links it visually with other time characters such as 早 and 时.
Learn 晚 with a four-step memory story
Memory story — a learning aid, not the historical origin of the character.
晚 describes the later part of the day and also something that happens late.
- 晚上: 晚 (late in the day) + 上 (marks this time period) = evening
- 来晚了: 来 (arrive) + 晚 (late) + 了 (the situation has changed) = arrived late
- 晚安: 晚 (night) + 安 (peaceful or safe) = good night
Which character can mean both evening and late?
Show the answer
晚 (wǎn) = late; evening; night🧩 Word buildingSee what every part contributes
Chinese words often combine short meaning clues. Fixed expressions are clearly marked so you do not translate them too literally.
晚上
晚late or evening上time period here=evening or night
今晚
今present晚evening=tonight
Chinese character origin and etymology
晚 is a phonosemantic compound. 日 contributes the meaning category of daylight or time, and 免 provides the historical sound clue. The character came to mean the later part of the day and, by extension, something late. The modern shape is not a drawing of a sunset, although a sunset remains a useful memory scene.
晚 is a left-right character. The narrow 日 on the left marks a connection with the day, while 免 fills the wider right side. 晚 contains 日 and 免. These parts act like clues: a component may suggest a meaning category, a pronunciation, or simply preserve part of the character's historical structure.
Chinese character stroke order and structure
晚 is written with 11 strokes. Learn the complete stroke sequence in the interactive lesson, then write the character from memory before checking your answer.
- 日 — sun; day — marks a time-of-day meaning
- 免 — miǎn — provides the historical pronunciation clue
Common usage and sentence patterns
The examples below show 晚 in complete beginner-friendly sentences. Read each sentence aloud, notice where the character appears, and then replace one noun or number to create a new sentence of your own.
我晚上看书。
I read in the evening.
他今天来晚了。
He arrived late today.
晚安！
Good night!
Learning tips for 晚
Learn the reading as one unit: wǎn, with the third tone: falling then rising. Avoid memorizing the letters without the tone mark. Say the syllable, recall the English meaning “late; evening; night,” and write the 11 strokes from memory.
Because 晚 contains reusable components, identify those clues before memorizing the whole shape. Compare it with 早 (zǎo, early; morning); 日 (rì, sun; day); 今 (jīn, now; present). Similar characters are easier to remember when their different parts and meanings are studied side by side.
Quick review checklist
- Can you recognize 晚 without pinyin?
- Can you say wǎn with the correct tone and explain “late; evening; night”?
- Can you write all 11 strokes in order?
- Can you use 晚 in one short sentence?
Related characters
Learn 晚 in a themed collection
Compare this character with related beginner words. A themed path helps you notice useful pairs, word-building patterns, and everyday contexts.
Continue learning Chinese characters
Use the Chinese radicals and components guide to understand reusable parts, the stroke order guide to improve handwriting, and the HSK 1 character overview to choose your next beginner lesson.
Sources and editorial note
HanziStory separates documented character history from modern memory stories. Historical-form images are shown only when a matching source file is available; missing stages are skipped rather than invented. Stroke practice uses HanziWriter data.
Last updated: August 12, 2026. Read our sources, editorial method, and correction policy.