人 meaning and stroke order
Person; people
How to write 人, stroke by stroke
2 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
- 2
Meaning of 人
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- person; people
How 人 is built
Pictographic character. The legs of a human being.
How to remember 人
人 (rén) is a picture of a person seen from the side, showing two legs. Think of a stick figure walking, with one leg striding forward and the other behind.
人 is one of the most common characters and appears in many words for types of people, like 工人 (gōngrén) worker and 病人 (bìngrén) patient. It also follows country names to mean a person from that place. Example: 他是中国人。(Tā shì Zhōngguó rén.) He is Chinese.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 人 (rén) with 入 (rù, to enter), which looks like a mirror image with the longer stroke on the right. In 人 the left stroke starts higher and the right stroke leans against it.
Common words with 人
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 女人 | nǚrén | woman | HSK 1 |
| 男人 | nánrén | a man; a male | HSK 1 |
| 别人 | biérén | other people; others; other person | HSK 1 |
| 家人 | jiārén | family member; (old) servant | HSK 1 |
| 病人 | bìngrén | sick person; patient | HSK 1 |
| 工人 | gōngrén | worker | HSK 1 |
| 老人 | lǎorén | old man or woman; the elderly | HSK 1 |
| 有人 | yǒu rén | someone; people | HSK 2 |
| 人们 | rénmen | people | HSK 2 |
| 大人 | dàren | adult; grownup | HSK 2 |
| 客人 | kèrén | visitor; guest; customer | HSK 2 |
| 好人 | hǎorén | good person; healthy person | HSK 2 |
| 主人 | zhǔrén | owner; host | HSK 2 |
| 坏人 | huàirén | bad person; villain | HSK 2 |
人 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 人
Learning 人 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 人
How many strokes are in 人?
人 is written with 2 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 人 mean?
人 (rén) means person; people. A common word with it is 女人 (nǚrén), meaning "woman".
How do you pronounce 人?
人 is pronounced rén, in the second tone (rising).
Is 人 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 人 is part of the HSK 1 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 1.
How do you say someone's nationality with 人?
Put 人 after the country name. For example, 美国人 (Měiguó rén) is an American and 日本人 (Rìběn rén) is a Japanese person.
What is the difference between 有人 and 别人?
有人 (yǒu rén) means someone or there are people, as in 有人在家吗? (Is anyone home?). 别人 (biérén) means other people, meaning people besides yourself or the person being discussed.