刚 meaning and stroke order
(literary) hard; firm; strong; exactly; precisely; barely; only just
How to write 刚, 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.
- 1
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Meaning of 刚
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (literary) hard; firm; strong
- exactly; precisely
- barely; only just
- just; only a short while ago
How 刚 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Knife.
刂 gives the meaning and 冈 hints at the sound.
Radical: 刂 (knife), shared by 71 characters on this site.
How to remember 刚
刚 combines 冈 (gāng), which gives the sound, with the knife side 刂, which points to meaning. Picture a knife blade that is hard and strong, so cutting with it gets the job done just in time.
In everyday speech 刚 is mostly an adverb meaning "just" or "only a moment ago," placed before the verb. The "hard, strong" sense lives on mainly in words like 刚毅 (gāngyì) and 金刚 (Jīngāng). Example: 我刚到家。(Wǒ gāng dào jiā.) I just got home.
Common mistake: Learners often treat 刚 and 刚才 (gāngcái) as the same, but 刚才 is a time word that can go before the subject, while 刚 must sit right before the verb: say 刚才我吃了 or 我刚吃了, not 刚我吃了. Also do not write the left part as 网 or 风; it is 冈.
Common words with 刚
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
刚 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 刚
How many strokes are in 刚?
刚 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 刚 mean?
刚 (gāng) means (literary) hard; firm; strong; exactly; precisely; barely; only just. A common word with it is 刚才 (gāngcái), meaning "just now; a moment ago".
How do you pronounce 刚?
刚 is pronounced gāng, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 刚?
The radical of 刚 is 刂, which carries the idea of "knife". Dictionaries list 刚 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 刚?
The traditional form of 刚 is 剛. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 刚 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 刚 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 刚 is part of the HSK 2 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 2.
What is the difference between 刚 and 刚刚?
They mean nearly the same thing, "just" or "only just." 刚刚 (gānggāng) is a bit more emphatic and spoken, suggesting something happened a very short time ago.
How do I use 刚好 (gānghǎo)?
刚好 means "exactly right" or "as it happens." For example, 这件衣服刚好 (zhè jiàn yīfu gānghǎo) means "this piece of clothing fits just right," and 我刚好有空 (wǒ gānghǎo yǒu kòng) means "I happen to be free."