叙 meaning and stroke order
To express, to state; to relate, to narrate
How to write 叙, 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.
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Meaning of 叙
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to narrate
- to chat
- variant of 敘|叙[xu4]
How 叙 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Again.
又 gives the meaning and 余 hints at the sound.
Radical: 又 (and), shared by 21 characters on this site.
How to remember 叙
叙 is built from 余 (yú), which gives the sound, and 又 (yòu), a hand that suggests doing something again. Picture a hand gesturing as you go over events again and again while you tell the story.
叙 rarely stands alone in modern speech. It appears in more formal words like 叙述 (xùshù, to relate) and 叙事 (xùshì, narrative), and in the warmer 叙旧 (xùjiù, to catch up on old times). Example: 我们好久没见，一起叙叙旧吧。(Wǒmen hǎojiǔ méi jiàn, yìqǐ xùxu jiù ba.) We haven't seen each other in ages, let's catch up.
Common mistake: Learners often read 叙 as yú because of the phonetic part 余, but it is pronounced xù with a fourth tone. Also do not confuse 叙述 (xùshù, to narrate) with 序 (xù, order, preface), which sounds the same but is a different character.
Common words with 叙
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
叙 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 叙
How many strokes are in 叙?
叙 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 叙 mean?
叙 (xù) means to express, to state; to relate, to narrate. A common word with it is 叙述 (xùshù), meaning "to relate (a story or information); to tell or talk about".
How do you pronounce 叙?
叙 is pronounced xù, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 叙?
The radical of 叙 is 又, which carries the idea of "and". Dictionaries list 叙 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 叙?
The traditional form of 叙 is 敍 and 敘. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 叙 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 叙 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 叙 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 叙述 and 描述?
叙述 (xùshù) means telling events in sequence, like recounting what happened. 描述 (miáoshù) means describing how something looks or feels. You 叙述 a story and 描述 a scene.
Can 叙 be used by itself as a verb?
Mostly it appears in compounds, but in set phrases it can stand alone, such as 叙叙旧 or 另叙 (lìng xù, to discuss separately). In everyday conversation people usually say 聊 (liáo) or 说 (shuō) instead.