The character 甲 — “first”: how to write it and what it means
first; shell, armor
The Chinese character 甲 is read jiǎ and means “first; shell, armor”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 甲
甲 has 5 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 甲, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 甲 is made of
The first of the ten “heavenly stems”: 甲, 乙… — like “A, B” in lists.
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 甲?
甲 has 5 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 甲 mean?
甲 means “first; shell, armor”.
How do you pronounce 甲?
甲 is read jiǎ. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 甲 have?
5 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 甲 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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