千 meaning and stroke order
Thousand
How to write 千, stroke by stroke
3 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
Meaning of 千
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- thousand
- used in 鞦韆|秋千[qiu1 qian1]
How 千 is built
Components of the character.
Radical: 十 (ten), shared by 23 characters on this site.
How to remember 千
千 is 十 (shí, ten) with a slanted stroke 丿 on top. Think of the slash as a little multiplier mark that turns ten into a much bigger number, a thousand.
千 (qiān) means thousand and is used for counting, as in 三千 (sānqiān, three thousand). It also appears in many idioms meaning "many," often paired with 万 (wàn) or 百 (bǎi). Example: 这本书卖了两千本。(Zhè běn shū mài le liǎngqiān běn.) This book sold two thousand copies.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 千 with 干 (gàn/gān). 千 starts with a slanted 丿 stroke on top, while 干 has a flat horizontal line. Also note that before 千 people usually say 两千 (liǎngqiān), not 二千, for two thousand.
Common words with 千
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 千克 | qiānkè | kilogram | HSK 2 |
| 千万 | qiānwàn | ten million; countless | HSK 3 |
| 成千上万 | chéngqiān-shàngwàn | (lit.) by the thousands and tens of thousands (idiom); (fig.) untold numbers; innumerable; | HSK 7-9 |
| 千方百计 | qiānfāng-bǎijì | lit. thousand ways, a hundred plans (idiom); by every possible means | HSK 7-9 |
| 千钧一发 | qiānjūn-yīfà | (lit.) a thousand pounds hangs by a thread (idiom); (fig.) (at the) critical; perilous (mo | HSK 7-9 |
| 千变万化 | qiānbiàn-wànhuà | countless changes; constant permutation | HSK 7-9 |
| 千家万户 | qiānjiā-wànhù | every family (idiom) | HSK 7-9 |
| 千军万马 | qiānjūn-wànmǎ | magnificent army with thousands of men and horses (idiom); impressive display of manpower; | HSK 7-9 |
| 千年 | qiānnián | millennium | |
| 千真万确 | qiānzhēnwànquè | absolutely true (idiom); manifold | |
| 千里 | qiānlǐ | a thousand miles; a thousand li (i.e. 500 kilometers) | |
| 千金 | qiānjīn | thousand jin 斤 (pounds) of gold; money and riches | |
| 数以千计 | shùyǐqiānjì | thousands (of sth) | |
| 成百上千 | chéngbǎishàngqiān | hundreds; a large number |
千 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 千
Learning 千 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 千
How many strokes are in 千?
千 is written with 3 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 千 mean?
千 (qiān) means thousand. A common word with it is 千克 (qiānkè), meaning "kilogram".
How do you pronounce 千?
千 is pronounced qiān, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 千?
The radical of 千 is 十, which carries the idea of "ten". Dictionaries list 千 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 千?
The traditional form of 千 is 韆. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 千 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 千 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 千 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 does 千万 mean besides ten million?
千万 (qiānwàn) is very often used as an adverb meaning "by all means" or "be sure to," usually in warnings. For example, 千万别迟到 (qiānwàn bié chídào) means "Whatever you do, don't be late."
Why does 千 appear in the word for swing?
The swing is written 秋千 (qiūqiān). Here 千 is used in the simplified form of the word, which was traditionally written 鞦韆. In this word it has nothing to do with the meaning thousand.