The character 采 — “pick”: how to write it and what it means

采
cǎi

pick, gather

8 strokes · HSK 5

The Chinese character 采 is read cǎi and means “pick, gather”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.

Stroke order: how to write 采

采 has 8 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 采, with strokes to trace and empty squares.

What 采 is made of

On top, a hand; at the bottom, 木 “tree”: picking fruit. It hints at the sound of 彩 cǎi and 菜 cài.

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

Words with 采

Frequently asked questions

How do you write the character 采?

采 has 8 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 采 mean?

采 means “pick, gather”. It appears in 采用 (“adopt”), 采取 (“adopt”), 采访 (“interview”), 采购 (“purchase”).

How do you pronounce 采?

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

How many strokes does 采 have?

8 strokes.

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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 采 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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