The character 看 — “look”: how to write it and what it means
look, watch
The Chinese character 看 is read kàn and means “look, watch”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 看
看 has 9 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 看, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 看 is made of
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Words with 看
- 好看good-lookingHSK 1
- 看见seeHSK 1
- 看病see a doctorHSK 1
- 难看uglyHSK 3
- 看来it seems, apparentlyHSK 3
- 看法opinion, viewHSK 4
- 查看check, look overHSK 4
- 观看watch (a show)HSK 4
- 看望visitHSK 5
- 收看watch (TV)HSK 5
- 看作look upon asHSK 5
- 眼看soon, any moment; watch (as)HSK 6
- 看中take a fancy to, settle onHSK 6
- 看待regard, viewHSK 6
- 看好consider promisingHSK 6
- 看重value highly, attach importanceHSK 6
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 看?
看 has 9 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 看 mean?
看 means “look, watch”. It appears in 好看 (“good-looking”), 看见 (“see”), 看病 (“see a doctor”), 难看 (“ugly”).
How do you pronounce 看?
看 is read kàn. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 看 have?
9 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 看 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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