Chinese Tattoo 梅: Meaning, Strokes & Design Guide
The character 梅 means "plums; prunes; surname" and is pronounced méi. Below: its structure, the words it appears in, and how it works as a tattoo.
Quick facts
| Character | 梅 |
| Pinyin | méi |
| Meaning | plums; prunes; surname |
| Strokes | 11 |
| Radical | ⽊ (No. 75) |
Words that contain 梅
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 梅花 | méi huā | plum blossom | newest-6 |
| 梅干菜 | mei2 gan1 cai4 | salt-pickled sun-dried cabbage (or potherb mustard etc) | — |
| 梅子 | mei2 zi5 | plum | — |
| 梅核气 | mei2 he2 qi4 | (TCM) plum-pit qi, a feeling of a lump in the throat (globus pharyngis) or of stagnant phlegm | — |
| 梅毒 | mei2 du2 | syphilis | — |
| 梅红 | mei2 hong2 | pinkish-red (color) | — |
Words and levels: HSK vocabulary list · meanings: CC-CEDICT.
Characters sharing the ⽊ radical
All of these share the ⽊ radical, so they are visually related — useful when you compare designs.
Placing 梅
梅 has 11 strokes — enough detail to survive a smaller placement, but not so much that it closes up. It is a practical size for a forearm, calf or upper arm. Agree the final stencil size with your artist before the appointment. Bring the stencil together with the pinyin and the meaning, and ask the artist to follow the stencil rather than redrawing the character freehand — freehand redrawing is the most common way a correct character loses a stroke and becomes a different one.
Design notes for 梅
梅 appears both on its own and inside compounds, so the sense depends on context; here it reads “plums; prunes; surname”. Regular script (楷书) keeps every stroke countable, which matters when a Chinese reader checks it. Avoid mirroring or rotating the character, and avoid very fine or cursive styles at small sizes, where strokes merge into a shape that reads as a different character.
Frequently asked questions
What does 梅 mean?
梅 (méi) means “plums; prunes; surname”.
How is 梅 pronounced?
梅 is pronounced méi in Mandarin.
How many strokes does 梅 have?
梅 has 11 strokes, under the ⽊ radical (No. 75).
How large should a 梅 tattoo be?
With 11 strokes, 梅 is moderately dense — it stays legible from roughly 4–5 cm upward. Shrinking it below that risks the strokes merging.
Which style works for 梅?
Bold regular script (楷书) keeps the strokes clear. Semi-cursive (行书) adds flow but softens edges. Seal script looks classical but is harder for most readers to verify — use it only if a native reader has confirmed the rendering.
Is 梅 common in modern Chinese?
It appears in everyday words such as 梅花、梅干菜、梅子, though it is more often used inside compounds than alone.
Should I use simplified or traditional 梅?
梅 is written the same in simplified and traditional Chinese, so there is no form to choose.
Want 梅 as a ready-to-use stencil with a native-checked meaning card, sized for your tattoo artist?
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Character data: Unihan (Unicode) · words: HSK vocabulary & CC-CEDICT · How we verify this