The character 笑 — “laugh”: how to write it and what it means
laugh
The Chinese character 笑 is read xiào and means “laugh”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 笑
笑 has 10 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 笑, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 笑 is made of
On top, 竹 “bamboo”.
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Words with 笑
- 笑话joke; laugh atHSK 4
- 好笑funnyHSK 4
- 开玩笑jokeHSK 4
- 微笑smile; smile (n.)HSK 5
- 嘲笑mock, ridiculeHSK 6
- 笑容smile (on the face)HSK 6
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 笑?
笑 has 10 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 笑 mean?
笑 means “laugh”. It appears in 笑话 (“joke”), 好笑 (“funny”), 开玩笑 (“joke”), 微笑 (“smile”).
How do you pronounce 笑?
笑 is read xiào. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 笑 have?
10 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 笑 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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