国 meaning and stroke order
Country; nation; state; (bound form) national
How to write 国, 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 国
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- country; nation; state
- (bound form) national
How 国 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. Treasure 玉 within a country's borders 囗.
Radical: 囗 (enclosure), shared by 39 characters on this site.
How to remember 国
The outer box 囗 is a border, and inside it sits 玉 (yù), jade or treasure. A country is the treasure protected within its borders.
国 (guó) rarely stands alone in speech. It usually appears in words like 国家 (guójiā), 中国 (Zhōngguó) and 外国 (wàiguó), and country names often end in 国, such as 美国 (Měiguó) for the USA. Example: 我想出国旅游。(Wǒ xiǎng chūguó lǚyóu.) I want to travel abroad.
Common mistake: Learners often write 王 (wáng) inside the box and forget the small dot of 玉, or confuse 国 with 图 (tú, picture), which has a different inner part. Also keep the second tone: guó rises, not falls.
Common words with 国
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 国家 | guójiā | country; nation; state | HSK 1 |
| 中国 | Zhōngguó | China | HSK 1 |
| 外国 | wàiguó | foreign country | HSK 1 |
| 国外 | guó wài | abroad; external (affairs) | HSK 1 |
| 国际 | guójì | international | HSK 2 |
| 全国 | quánguó | whole nation; nationwide | HSK 2 |
| 出国 | chūguó | to go abroad; to leave the country | HSK 2 |
| 回国 | huí guó | to return to one's home country | HSK 2 |
| 国内 | guó nèi | domestic; internal (to a country) | HSK 3 |
| 联合国 | Liánhéguó | United Nations | HSK 3 |
| 国庆 | guóqìng | National Day | HSK 3 |
| 爱国 | àiguó | to love one's country; patriotic | HSK 4 |
| 国民 | guómín | nationals; citizens | HSK 5 |
| 国籍 | guójí | nationality | HSK 5 |
国 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 国
Learning 国 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 国
How many strokes are in 国?
国 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 国 mean?
国 (guó) means country; nation; state; (bound form) national. A common word with it is 国家 (guójiā), meaning "country; nation; state".
How do you pronounce 国?
国 is pronounced guó, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 国?
The radical of 国 is 囗, which carries the idea of "enclosure". Dictionaries list 国 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 国?
The traditional form of 国 is 國. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 国 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 国 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 国 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.
What is the difference between 外国 and 国外?
外国 (wàiguó) means a foreign country, as in 外国人 (wàiguórén), foreigner. 国外 (guó wài) means abroad, the place outside your country, as in 在国外工作 (zài guó wài gōngzuò), to work abroad.
Why do so many country names end in 国?
国 works like the word "country" attached to a name, for example 英国 (Yīngguó, the UK) and 法国 (Fǎguó, France). Not every name uses it, though. 日本 (Rìběn, Japan) and 意大利 (Yìdàlì, Italy) do not.