The character 什 — “part of “what””: how to write it and what it means
part of “what”
The Chinese character 什 is read shén and means “part of “what””. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 什
什 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 什, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 什 is made of
It almost never appears on its own, only in 什么.
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Words with 什
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 什?
什 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 什 mean?
什 means “part of “what””. It appears in 什么 (“what”), 为什么 (“why”).
How do you pronounce 什?
什 is read shén. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 什 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 什 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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