乎 meaning and stroke order
Interrogative or exclamatory final particle
How to write 乎, stroke by stroke
5 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
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- 5
Meaning of 乎
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (classical particle similar to 於|于[yu2]) in
- at
- from
- because
- than
- (classical final particle similar to 嗎|吗[ma5], 吧[ba5], 呢[ne5], expressing question, doubt or astonishment)
How 乎 is built
Components of the character.
Radical: 丿 (slash), shared by 19 characters on this site.
How to remember 乎
Picture 乎 as a little breath of air: the slanted stroke 丿 on top and the two dots 丷 like puffs of sound rising off a vertical line, the sigh you make at the end of a question or exclamation. It looks like 平 (píng) with a tilted hat, but that hat turns a flat statement into a wondering one.
In modern Chinese 乎 rarely stands alone. It mostly appears inside fixed words like 几乎 (jīhū, almost), 似乎 (sìhū, it seems) and 在乎 (zàihu, to care about), where it keeps its old sense of "in" or "at". Example: 我几乎忘了。(Wǒ jīhū wàng le.) I almost forgot.
Common mistake: Learners often write 乎 as 平 (píng, flat) or 呼 (hū, to call out), which shares the sound but adds 口 on the left. Also note that in 在乎 (zàihu) the 乎 is usually said in the neutral tone, while in 几乎 and 似乎 it keeps the first tone hū.
Common words with 乎
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 似乎 | sìhū | it seems; seemingly; as if | HSK 4 |
| 几乎 | jīhū | almost; nearly; practically | HSK 4 |
| 不在乎 | bùzàihu | not to care | HSK 4 |
| 在乎 | zàihu | to rest with; to lie in; to be due to (a certain attribute); (often used in the negative) | HSK 4 |
| 合乎 | héhū | to accord with; to conform to | HSK 7-9 |
| 不亦乐乎 | bùyìlèhū | lit. isn't that a joy? (quote from Confucius); fig. (jocular) extremely; awfully | HSK 7-9 |
| 关乎 | guānhū | to relate to; concerning | |
| 出乎意料 | chūhūyìliào | (idiom) unexpected | |
| 近乎 | jìnhu | close to; intimate | |
| 出乎 | chūhū | due to; to stem from | |
| 傻乎乎 | shǎhūhū | feeble-minded; dim-witted | |
| 套近乎 | tàojìnhū | to worm one's way into being friends with sb (usually derogatory) | |
| 微乎其微 | wēihūqíwēi | a tiny bit; very little |
乎 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 乎
Learning 乎 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 乎
How many strokes are in 乎?
乎 is written with 5 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 乎 mean?
乎 (hū) means interrogative or exclamatory final particle. A common word with it is 似乎 (sìhū), meaning "it seems; seemingly; as if".
How do you pronounce 乎?
乎 is pronounced hū, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 乎?
The radical of 乎 is 丿, which carries the idea of "slash". Dictionaries list 乎 under this radical.
Is 乎 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 乎 is part of the HSK 4 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 乎 mean in 不亦乐乎?
Here 乎 is the classical question particle, like modern 吗 (ma), so the line from Confucius means "Isn't that a joy?" Today people use 不亦乐乎 jokingly to mean "extremely", as in 忙得不亦乐乎 (máng de bùyìlèhū), busy as anything.
Can I end a modern sentence with 乎 instead of 吗?
Not in normal speech or writing. Using 乎 as a final particle sounds classical, and people only do it to sound literary or playful. In everyday Chinese use 吗, 吧 or 呢 instead.