The character 课 — “lesson”: how to write it and what it means
lesson
The Chinese character 课 is read kè and means “lesson”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 课
课 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 课, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 课 is made of
On the left, 讠 “speech”.
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Words with 课
- 上课attend classHSK 1
- 下课finish classHSK 1
- 课本textbookHSK 3
- 课文lesson textHSK 3
- 课程course, curriculumHSK 4
- 课堂class, classroom workHSK 4
- 功课lessons, homeworkHSK 4
- 补课make up missed lessonsHSK 6
- 课题research topic, problemHSK 6
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 课?
课 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 课 mean?
课 means “lesson”. It appears in 上课 (“attend class”), 下课 (“finish class”), 课本 (“textbook”), 课文 (“lesson text”).
How do you pronounce 课?
课 is read kè. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 课 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 课 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.
Start for free