午 meaning and stroke order
Noon; 7th terrestrial branch
How to write 午, stroke by stroke
4 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
Meaning of 午
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- 7th earthly branch: 11 a.m.-1 p.m., noon, 5th solar month (6th June-6th July), year of the Horse
- ancient Chinese compass point: 180° (south)
How 午 is built
Components of the character.
Radical: 十 (ten), shared by 23 characters on this site.
How to remember 午
午 is built from a slanted stroke 丿 sitting on top of 干 (gān). Picture the sun at noon casting a short slanted mark over a dry 干 stick standing straight up in the midday heat.
午 rarely stands alone in modern Chinese. It appears in time words like 上午 (shàngwǔ, morning), 中午 (zhōngwǔ, noon), and 下午 (xiàwǔ, afternoon), and in meal words like 午饭 (wǔfàn, lunch). Example: 我下午三点有课。(Wǒ xiàwǔ sān diǎn yǒu kè.) I have class at 3 p.m.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 午 (wǔ) with 牛 (niú, cow). In 牛 the vertical stroke pokes through the top, while in 午 it stops at the upper horizontal line.
Common words with 午
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 下午 | xiàwǔ | afternoon; p.m. | HSK 1 |
| 午饭 | wǔfàn | lunch | HSK 1 |
| 中午 | zhōngwǔ | noon; midday | HSK 1 |
| 上午 | shàngwǔ | morning | HSK 1 |
| 午餐 | wǔcān | lunch; luncheon | HSK 2 |
| 午睡 | wǔshuì | to take a nap in the afternoon | HSK 2 |
| 端午节 | Duānwǔ Jié | Dragon Boat Festival (5th day of the 5th lunar month) | HSK 6 |
| 午夜 | wǔyè | midnight | |
| 午安 | wǔ'ān | Good afternoon!; Hello (daytime greeting) | |
| 正午 | zhèngwǔ | midday; noon | |
| 午后 | wǔhòu | afternoon | |
| 下午茶 | xiàwǔchá | afternoon tea (light afternoon meal, typically pastries with tea or coffee) | |
| 午休 | wǔxiū | noon break; lunch break | |
| 睡午觉 | shuìwǔjiào | to have a nap |
午 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 午
Learning 午 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 午
How many strokes are in 午?
午 is written with 4 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 午 mean?
午 (wǔ) means noon; 7th terrestrial branch. A common word with it is 下午 (xiàwǔ), meaning "afternoon; p.m.".
How do you pronounce 午?
午 is pronounced wǔ, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 午?
The radical of 午 is 十, which carries the idea of "ten". Dictionaries list 午 under this radical.
Is 午 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 午 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.
Does 午夜 mean noon or midnight?
午夜 (wǔyè) means midnight, not noon. Even though 午 relates to noon, 夜 (yè, night) shifts the meaning to the middle of the night.
Why is 午 connected to the Horse in the zodiac?
午 is the 7th earthly branch, and in the traditional system that branch is paired with the year of the Horse. So a Horse year can be called a 午 year, and this branch also marks the 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. period.