The character 夜 — “night”: how to write it and what it means

夜
yè

night

8 strokes · HSK 4 · word page

The Chinese character 夜 is read yè and means “night”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.

Stroke order: how to write 夜

夜 has 8 strokes. At each step the new stroke is highlighted — write them in the same order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical, a frame before what is inside it, and the bottom stroke of the frame last.

To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for 夜, with strokes to trace and empty squares.

Words with 夜

Frequently asked questions

How do you write the character 夜?

夜 has 8 strokes. They follow the usual rules: top to bottom, left to right, horizontal before vertical, outside before inside. The order of each stroke is shown on this page.

What does 夜 mean?

夜 means “night”. It appears in 夜晚 (“night”), 半夜 (“midnight”), 夜间 (“nighttime”), 熬夜 (“stay up late”).

How do you pronounce 夜?

夜 is read yè. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.

How many strokes does 夜 have?

8 strokes.

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More characters on the page “Chinese characters with meanings” and in the list of HSK characters by level; whole words are in the dictionary.

Write 夜 yourself

In the lessons you write characters stroke by stroke with a finger or a mouse, and the course checks the order. You can start for free, no sign-up needed.

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