The character 冬 — “winter”: how to write it and what it means

冬
dōng

winter

5 strokes · HSK 3

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

Stroke order: how to write 冬

冬 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 冬, with strokes to trace and empty squares.

What 冬 is made of

The two dots at the bottom mean “ice”.

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

Words with 冬

Frequently asked questions

How do you write the character 冬?

冬 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 冬 mean?

冬 means “winter”. It appears in 冬天 (“winter”), 寒冬 (“severe winter”).

How do you pronounce 冬?

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

How many strokes does 冬 have?

5 strokes.

← 秋 autumn季 season →

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 冬 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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