叁 meaning and stroke order
Three (bankers' anti-fraud numeral)
How to write 叁, stroke by stroke
8 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
- 6
- 7
- 8
Meaning of 叁
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- three (banker's anti-fraud numeral)
- variant of 參|叁[san1]
How 叁 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. Three 三 with accents to prevent forgery.
Radical: 厶 (private), shared by 11 characters on this site.
How to remember 叁
At the bottom sits a plain 三 (sān, three), and 厶 and 大 are stacked on top like extra accents. The added strokes make it hard for anyone to change the number on a check.
叁 is the formal, anti-fraud way to write three on checks, receipts, contracts and bank forms, where a simple 三 could easily be altered. In daily writing people just use 三. Example: 叁佰元整 (sān bǎi yuán zhěng) means "exactly three hundred yuan."
Common mistake: Learners sometimes write 叁 in ordinary text, such as 叁个人, but it only belongs on financial documents, so use 三 there instead. It is also easy to confuse with 参 (cān, to take part), which shares the 厶 and 大 top but ends in three slanted strokes 彡 instead of 三.
Questions about 叁
How many strokes are in 叁?
叁 is written with 8 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 叁 mean?
叁 (sān) means three (bankers' anti-fraud numeral).
How do you pronounce 叁?
叁 is pronounced sān, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 叁?
The radical of 叁 is 厶, which carries the idea of "private". Dictionaries list 叁 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 叁?
The traditional form of 叁 is 參. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 叁 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
What are the other banker's numerals like 叁?
The full set is 壹 (1), 贰 (2), 叁 (3), 肆 (4), 伍 (5), 陆 (6), 柒 (7), 捌 (8), 玖 (9) and 拾 (10). Larger units are written 佰 (hundred) and 仟 (thousand).
Is 叁 pronounced differently from 三?
No. Both are read sān with the first tone. The only difference is the written form, which is used for security on money documents.