脸
face
liǎn
What does 脸 mean?
脸 (liǎn) is the everyday Chinese word for face — the physical front of the head. The measure word is 张 (zhāng), used for flat surfaces like paper and faces: 一张脸 ('one face'). Beyond the literal meaning, 脸 is the core of one of the most important concepts in Chinese culture: 面子 / 脸 ('face' in the social sense — reputation, dignity, honor). 丢脸 means 'lose face / be embarrassed'; 给面子 means 'give someone face' (show respect); 不要脸 ('not want face') is a strong insult meaning 'shameless.'
For English speakers, the trickiest distinction is 脸 vs 面: 脸 is the everyday physical face; 面 is more abstract and shows up in compounds (面子, 面包 'bread,' 见面 'meet'). The radical 月 (here meaning 'flesh / body part')
Character breakdown
face (flesh radical 月 + 佥 phonetic)
Memory hook: 脸 has 月 on the left — the flesh radical, marking it as a body part you can touch.
Measure word for 脸
Example sentences
她的脸很红。
Tā de liǎn hěn hóng.
Her face is very red.
neutral
我每天早上洗脸。
Wǒ měi tiān zǎoshang xǐ liǎn.
I wash my face every morning.
spoken
他笑了，脸上有一个大大的笑脸。
Tā xiào le, liǎn shàng yǒu yí ge dà dà de xiào liǎn.
He smiled, with a big smile on his face.
neutral
别说了，太丢脸了。
Bié shuō le, tài diū liǎn le.
Stop talking — it's too embarrassing.
spoken
Common phrases with 脸
Synonyms
面 is the more literary/abstract word for 'face,' rare on its own in modern speech. It dominates compounds (面子, 见面, 面对). For everyday physical face, use 脸.
Don't confuse 脸 with
睑 (with eye radical 目) means 'eyelid' — a medical term. 脸 (with flesh radical 月) is the whole face. Different radicals, different body parts.
险 ('dangerous / risky') has the right-side phonetic 佥 like 脸, but the left side is the mountain/earth radical 阝. Tone and meaning are completely different.