俗 meaning and stroke order
Custom; convention; popular
How to write 俗, stroke by stroke
9 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
- 3
- 4
- 5
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- 8
- 9
Meaning of 俗
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- custom
- convention
- popular
- common
- coarse
- vulgar
How 俗 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Person.
亻 gives the meaning and 谷 hints at the sound.
Radical: 亻 (man), shared by 277 characters on this site.
How to remember 俗
俗 is a person 亻 next to a valley 谷 (gǔ), which also hints at the sound. Picture people living together in a valley, sharing the same everyday habits, and you have customs and things that are common.
俗 rarely stands alone in formal writing. It mostly appears in words like 风俗 (fēngsú, custom), 习俗 (xísú, tradition) and 俗话 (súhuà, common saying). As an adjective in speech it often means tacky or clichéd: 这个设计太俗了 (zhège shèjì tài sú le), This design is too tacky.
Common mistake: Learners often write 浴 (yù, to bathe) by mistake, because both share 谷. Remember that 浴 has water 氵 and 俗 has a person 亻. Also keep the second tone sú, not sù.
Common words with 俗
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 风俗 | fēngsú | social custom | HSK 4 |
| 习俗 | xísú | custom; tradition | HSK 7-9 |
| 俗话说 | súhuà shuō | as the proverb says; as they say... | HSK 7-9 |
| 庸俗 | yōngsú | vulgar; tacky | HSK 7-9 |
| 通俗 | tōngsú | common; everyday | HSK 7-9 |
| 俗语 | súyǔ | common saying; proverb | HSK 7-9 |
| 民俗 | mínsú | popular custom | HSK 7-9 |
| 俗话 | súhuà | common saying; proverb | HSK 7-9 |
| 约定俗成 | yuēdìng-súchéng | established by popular usage (idiom); common usage agreement; customary convention | HSK 7-9 |
| 粗俗 | cūsú | vulgar | |
| 世俗 | shìsú | profane; secular | |
| 低俗 | dīsú | vulgar; poor taste | |
| 俗气 | súqì | tacky; inelegant | |
| 愤世嫉俗 | fènshìjísú | to be cynical; to be embittered |
俗 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 俗
How many strokes are in 俗?
俗 is written with 9 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 俗 mean?
俗 (sú) means custom; convention; popular. A common word with it is 风俗 (fēngsú), meaning "social custom".
How do you pronounce 俗?
俗 is pronounced sú, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 俗?
The radical of 俗 is 亻, which carries the idea of "man". Dictionaries list 俗 under this radical.
Is 俗 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 俗 is part of the HSK 4 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Is calling something 俗 an insult?
It can be. Saying a person or thing is 俗 (sú) means it is unrefined or tacky, so use it with care. In words like 风俗 or 民俗 it is neutral and simply means custom.
What is the difference between 通俗 and 庸俗?
通俗 (tōngsú) is positive or neutral and means easy for ordinary people to understand, as in 通俗易懂. 庸俗 (yōngsú) is negative and means vulgar or in poor taste.