The character 水 — “water”: how to write it and what it means
water
The Chinese character 水 is read shuǐ and means “water”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 水
水 has 4 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 水, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 水 is made of
A picture of a stream.
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Words with 水
- 水果fruitHSK 1
- 水平levelHSK 3
- 矿泉水mineral waterHSK 3
- 汽水sodaHSK 4
- 开水boiling waterHSK 5
- 泪水tears (lit.)HSK 5
- 降水precipitationHSK 5
- 雨水rainwater; rainsHSK 5
- 水分moisture; exaggerationHSK 5
- 汗水sweat (lit.)HSK 5
- 胶水glue (liquid)HSK 6
- 水泥cementHSK 6
- 酒水drinks (alcoholic and not)HSK 6
- 香水perfumeHSK 6
- 薪水salary, payHSK 6
- 水稻rice (plant)HSK 6
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 水?
水 has 4 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 水 mean?
水 means “water”. It appears in 水果 (“fruit”), 水平 (“level”), 矿泉水 (“mineral water”), 汽水 (“soda”).
How do you pronounce 水?
水 is read shuǐ. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 水 have?
4 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 水 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