堆 meaning and stroke order
To pile up; to heap up; a mass
How to write 堆, stroke by stroke
11 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
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- 11
Meaning of 堆
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to pile up
- to heap up
- a mass
- pile
- heap
- stack
How 堆 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Earth.
土 gives the meaning and 隹 hints at the sound.
Radical: 土 (soil), shared by 183 characters on this site.
How to remember 堆
堆 is pictophonetic: 土 (earth) on the left gives the meaning, and 隹 (zhuī, a short-tailed bird) on the right hints at the sound. Picture a bird standing on a heap of earth to remember that 堆 means a pile.
堆 works as a verb meaning to pile up and as a measure word for things in heaps. In speech, 一堆 (yīduī) often just means a lot of something. Example: 桌子上有一堆书。(Zhuōzi shàng yǒu yī duī shū.) There is a pile of books on the table.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 堆 with 推 (tuī, to push), which has the same right side 隹 but the hand radical 扌 on the left. Also keep the first tone in duī. Do not let it drift to the third tone duǐ.
Common words with 堆
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
堆 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 堆
How many strokes are in 堆?
堆 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 堆 mean?
堆 (duī) means to pile up; to heap up; a mass. A common word with it is 堆砌 (duīqì), meaning "lit. to pile up (bricks); to pack".
How do you pronounce 堆?
堆 is pronounced duī, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 堆?
The radical of 堆 is 土, which carries the idea of "soil". Dictionaries list 堆 under this radical.
Is 堆 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 堆 is part of the HSK 5 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 3.
Can 一堆 describe people or problems, not just objects?
Yes. In casual speech you can say 一堆人 (yī duī rén, a crowd of people) or 一堆问题 (yī duī wèntí, a bunch of problems). It often sounds a little informal or slightly negative, like saying a whole bunch.
What is the difference between 堆 and 堆积?
堆 is the everyday verb and measure word, as in 把衣服堆在床上 (put the clothes in a pile on the bed). 堆积 (duījī) is more formal and describes things building up over time, like 堆积如山 (piled up like a mountain).