Chinese Character Strokes

Chinese characters are constructed from a set of basic strokes. Understanding these strokes is fundamental for learning to write, recognize, and distinguish Chinese characters. Each stroke has a specific name, direction, and order.

Basic Strokes

• 横 (héng): Horizontal stroke (一)
• 竖 (shù): Vertical stroke (丨)
• 撇 (piě): Left-falling stroke (丿)
• 捺 (nà): Right-falling stroke (丶)
• 点 (diǎn): Dot stroke (、)
• 提 (tí): Rising stroke (㇀)
• 折 (zhé): Turning stroke (e.g., 乙)
• 钩 (gōu): Hook stroke (e.g., 亅)

Stroke Order Rules

• Top to bottom (先上后下)
• Left to right (先左后右)
• Horizontal before vertical (先横后竖)
• Outside before inside (先外后内)
• Close frames last (先中间后封口)

Why Is Stroke Order Important?

• Helps with correct and beautiful handwriting.
• Makes it easier to memorize and recognize characters.
• Essential for using Chinese dictionaries (which often sort by stroke order or count).
• Improves writing speed and efficiency.

Tips for Practicing Strokes

• Practice writing basic strokes repeatedly before writing full characters.
• Follow stroke order diagrams or animations for each character.
• Write characters in grid paper to keep proportions correct.
• Pay attention to the direction and length of each stroke.

Common Mistakes

• Writing strokes in the wrong order, leading to awkward or incorrect characters.
• Confusing similar strokes, such as 撇 (piě) and 捺 (nà).
• Ignoring hooks or dots, which can change the meaning of a character.

Mastering Chinese character strokes is the first step to beautiful and accurate handwriting. With regular practice, you will develop muscle memory and a deeper understanding of character structure.