The character 肩 — “shoulder”: how to write it and what it means

肩
jiān

shoulder

8 strokes · HSK 6

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

Stroke order: how to write 肩

肩 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 肩, with strokes to trace and empty squares.

What 肩 is made of

Below, 月 “flesh”; on top, 户.

The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.

Words with 肩

Frequently asked questions

How do you write the character 肩?

肩 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 肩 mean?

肩 means “shoulder”. It appears in 肩膀 (“shoulder”).

How do you pronounce 肩?

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

How many strokes does 肩 have?

8 strokes.

← 椎 vertebra臂 arm →

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 肩 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