Characters of Unit 1

To learn to write Chinese characters, all you need is a ballpoint pen and a sheet of squared paper.

At first, however, it is better to use writing grids with models.

You can watch the writing exercise in this video (in French):

Learning Chinese: writing the characters of Unit 1

Please choose how the character breakdown is displayed:

你 nǐ: you

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 亻 human; 冖 roof; 小 small.
Etymology: The ancient character for the pronoun "you" is 尔 ěr, a simplification of 爾, which represented a frame for drying threads. This character was borrowed to denote the personal pronoun "you". In modern Chinese, the human component 亻 was added to it to form 你.

Character evolution:

Oracle bone	Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script	Simplified
爾	尔	尔	尔	尔	尔

好 hǎo: to be good, to be well

Phonetics: the h is pronounced. Depending on the region of China, it is more or less "hard", sometimes just a light breath, sometimes more like the ch in the Scottish "loch".

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 女 woman; 子 child.
Etymology: 好 hǎo is an ideogram made up of the woman and the child. It originally meant "to have a beautiful appearance". Later its meaning broadened to "beautiful and good", then "good".

Character evolution:

Oracle bone	Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script
好	好	好	好	好

Vocabulary:

你好 nǐhǎo: hello

吗 ma: final interrogative particle

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 口 mouth; 马 horse.
Etymology: 吗 ma is a phono-semantic compound. It is made up of 口 (the mouth), which indicates the act of opening one's mouth to speak or ask a question, and of 马 mǎ (the horse), which indicates the pronunciation of the character.

Character evolution:

Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script	Simplified
吗	吗	吗	吗	吗

我 wǒ: I, me

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 扌 hand; 戈 halberd.
Etymology: 我 wǒ is a pictogram that represented an ancient weapon with a long handle and a three-pronged blade. It was later borrowed phonetically to denote the personal pronoun "I".

Character evolution:

Oracle bone	Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script
我	我	我	我	我

很 hěn: very

Phonetics: the h is pronounced. Depending on the region of China, it is more or less "hard", sometimes just a light breath, sometimes more like the ch in the Scottish "loch".

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 彳 path / a step with the left foot; 艮 phonetic element gèn (characters formed with this component end in "en").
Etymology: 很 hěn is a phono-semantic compound made up of the path 彳 and the phonetic element 艮 gèn. 艮 was an ideogram meaning "to look with anger" (you can recognize the eye 目 and a person 人). 很 originally meant "to go against", "to disobey", then took on the meaning of "to a high degree, strongly, very".

Character evolution:

Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script
很	很	很	很

也 yě: also, too

Stroke order:

Graphic components: As a component, 也 represents the viper or the vase.
Etymology: 也 yě is a borrowing from a pictogram that originally represented a snake. The character for the vase was very similar and became confused with it. It was borrowed phonetically to mean "also, too".

Character evolution:

Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script
也	也	也	也

不 bù: negation, not

Phonetics: the B in pinyin is pronounced between the English B and P. It is closer to P than to B. The U in pinyin is pronounced "oo" (as in "food"), except after J, Y, Q, X where it is pronounced like the German "ü" (round your lips to say "oo" while trying to say "ee").

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 不 is made up of four basic strokes (horizontal, left-falling, vertical, right-falling). 不 is not in the list of the 214 radicals, but it is a basic graphic element.
Etymology: 不 bù is a pictogram that represented the receptacle of a flower. It was later borrowed phonetically to denote negation.

Character evolution:

Oracle bone	Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script
不	不	不	不	不

客 kè: (host, guest); not used on its own

Phonetics: the K in pinyin is pronounced with a strong burst of air. It is an aspirated consonant. The term "aspirated consonant" can be confusing. You will find a detailed explanation in this Glossary article by clicking the words: aspirated consonant.

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 宀 roof; 夂 to go; 口 mouth.
Etymology: 客 kè is a phono-semantic compound made up of the roof 宀, under which our guests come, and the character 各 gè (each), which provides the sound cue.

Character evolution:

Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script
客	客	客	客

气 qì: (breath); not used on its own. It loses its tone in the word kèqi "to be polite".

Phonetics: the Q in pinyin is pronounced with a burst of air (aspirated consonant), a bit like a "ts", but with the BACK OF THE TONGUE. The trick is to place the tip of your tongue behind your lower teeth and pronounce "ts".

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 气 is a graphic component.
Etymology: 气 is a pictogram that represented wisps of mist. Surprisingly, the simplified character revives the oldest form. Later, the rice component 米 was added to it to form the traditional 氣. The 气 is the famous QI (formerly written CHI), the energy that martial-arts practitioners cultivate and that acupuncture needles disperse or tonify.

Character evolution:

Oracle bone	Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script	Simplified
气	气	气	气	气	气

Vocabulary:

客气 kèqi: to be polite
不客气 bú kèqi: you're welcome, don't mention it (literally "don't be polite"). See the page Culture.)

再 zài: again, re-

Phonetics: the Z in pinyin is pronounced like "dz" with the tip of the tongue behind the upper teeth. AI in pinyin is pronounced like "eye" in English.

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 一 one; 冉 drooping hairs.
Etymology: 再 zài was originally an ideogram made up of the number 2 二 and the fish 魚. It first meant "two fish", then its meaning broadened to "two", then "a second time / again".

Character evolution:

Oracle bone	Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script
再	再	再	再	再

见 jiàn: to see, to catch sight of

Phonetics: the J in pinyin is pronounced between "dz" and "dj", but with the BACK OF THE TONGUE. Tip: pronounce "dz" with the tip of your tongue behind your lower teeth. IAN in pinyin is pronounced like "yen" in English.

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 见 is a graphic component.
Etymology: 见 jiàn is the simplification of the traditional character 見. It is an ideogram made up of the eye 目 and a human 人. It meant and still means "to see, to catch sight of".

Character evolution:

Oracle bone	Bronze	Seal script	Clerical script	Regular script	Simplified
見	见	见	见	见	见

Vocabulary:

再见 zàijiàn: goodbye

The following character, 谢, is harder to write. If you find it difficult to study, you can set its writing aside. You should at least be able to read it. You can come back to it later, once you are more comfortable with Chinese writing.

谢 xiè: (thank you)

Phonetics: the X in pinyin is pronounced like an "s", but with the BACK OF THE TONGUE. Tip: pronounce "s" with the tip of your tongue behind your lower teeth.

Stroke order:

Graphic components: 讠 speech; 身 the body; 寸 the thumb.
Etymology: 谢 xiè is an ideogram. The old traditional character represented an object handed over with both hands. Even today, in China it is more polite to give things with both hands. The stylization of the character led to the evolution into the three graphic components we see here.

Character evolution: