The character 案 — “case”: how to write it and what it means
case, record; plan
The Chinese character 案 is read àn and means “case, record; plan”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 案
案 has 10 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 案, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 案 is made of
On top, 安 ān hints at the sound; at the bottom, 木 “tree, wood”: originally a small wooden table.
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Words with 案
- 答案answer (to a task)HSK 4
- 方案plan, proposed solutionHSK 5
- 档案archive, personal fileHSK 6
- 案例case (from practice), case studyHSK 6
- 图案pattern, ornamentHSK 6
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 案?
案 has 10 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 案 mean?
案 means “case, record; plan”. It appears in 答案 (“answer”), 方案 (“plan”), 档案 (“archive”), 案例 (“case”).
How do you pronounce 案?
案 is read àn. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 案 have?
10 strokes.
← 篇 measure word for texts基 base →
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 案 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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