The character 好 — “good”: how to write it and what it means
good, well
The Chinese character 好 is read hǎo and means “good, well”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 好
好 has 6 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 好, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 好 is made of
女 “woman” and 子 “child” side by side: “good”.
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Words with 好
- 你好hiHSK 1
- 好看good-lookingHSK 1
- 好吃tastyHSK 1
- 好听pleasant to hearHSK 1
- 您好hello (polite)HSK 1
- 好玩儿funHSK 1
- 爱好hobbyHSK 2
- 不好意思embarrassed; excuse meHSK 2
- 好多a lot ofHSK 3
- 好久a long timeHSK 3
- 好像seem; it looks likeHSK 3
- 最好best; had betterHSK 3
- 好好properly, wellHSK 4
- 只好have no choice but toHSK 4
- 美好wonderful, happyHSK 4
- 正好just right, by chanceHSK 4
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 好?
好 has 6 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 好 mean?
好 means “good, well”. It appears in 你好 (“hi”), 好看 (“good-looking”), 好吃 (“tasty”), 好听 (“pleasant to hear”).
How do you pronounce 好?
好 is read hǎo. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 好 have?
6 strokes.
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 好 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.
Start for free