The character 刚 — “just now”: how to write it and what it means
just now; hard
The Chinese character 刚 is read gāng and means “just now; hard”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 刚
刚 has 6 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 刚, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 刚 is made of
On the right, 刂 “knife”.
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Words with 刚
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 刚?
刚 has 6 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 刚 mean?
刚 means “just now; hard”. It appears in 刚才 (“just now”), 刚刚 (“just barely”), 刚好 (“just right”).
How do you pronounce 刚?
刚 is read gāng. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 刚 have?
6 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 刚 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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