亥 meaning and stroke order
12th terrestrial branch; used in transliterations
How to write 亥, stroke by stroke
6 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 亥
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- 12th earthly branch: 9-11 p.m., 10th solar month (7th November-6th December), year of the Boar
- ancient Chinese compass point: 330°
How 亥 is built
Components of the character.
Radical: 亠 (lid), shared by 18 characters on this site.
How to remember 亥
亥 (hài) starts with the lid 亠 on top, like a roof over a pig pen at night. Picture the Boar settling down under its roof between 9 and 11 p.m., the hour of 亥.
亥 is the last of the twelve earthly branches, so you see it in dates, zodiac years, and traditional time names. It pairs with the heavenly stems in the sixty-year cycle, as in 辛亥 (xīnhài), the year name of the 1911 revolution. Example: 亥时是晚上九点到十一点。(Hàishí shì wǎnshang jiǔ diǎn dào shíyī diǎn.) The hour of 亥 is 9 to 11 p.m.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 亥 with 刻 (kè) or 该 (gāi), which contain 亥 as a part but have different sounds and meanings. Also keep the fourth tone in hài, not hāi like the greeting 嗨.
亥 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 亥
Learning 亥 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 亥
How many strokes are in 亥?
亥 is written with 6 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 亥 mean?
亥 (hài) means 12th terrestrial branch; used in transliterations.
How do you pronounce 亥?
亥 is pronounced hài, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 亥?
The radical of 亥 is 亠, which carries the idea of "lid". Dictionaries list 亥 under this radical.
Is 亥 the character for pig?
No. The everyday word for pig is 猪 (zhū). 亥 is the earthly branch linked to the year of the Boar, so people say 亥猪 (hài zhū) when pairing the branch with its animal.
Why do so many characters contain 亥?
亥 works as a sound component in characters like 孩 (hái), 该 (gāi), 核 (hé), and 咳 (ké). When you see 亥 inside another character, it often hints at a similar sound.