始 meaning and stroke order
To begin, to start; beginning
How to write 始, 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 始
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to begin
- to start
- then
- only then
How 始 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Woman.
女 gives the meaning and 台 hints at the sound.
Radical: 女 (woman), shared by 156 characters on this site.
How to remember 始
始 combines 女 (woman) with 台 as the sound part. Picture a woman as the one who gives birth, where every life begins, and 台 hints at the sound.
始 rarely stands alone in modern speech. It mostly appears in words like 开始 (kāishǐ) and 始终 (shǐzhōng). Example: 电影七点开始。(Diànyǐng qī diǎn kāishǐ.) The movie starts at seven.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes write the right side as 召 or 合 instead of 台 (厶 over 口). Also, 台 is read tái, but 始 is shǐ with a third tone, so do not guess the sound from the phonetic part.
Common words with 始
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 开始 | kāishǐ | to begin; to start; beginning; start | HSK 3 |
| 始终 | shǐzhōng | from beginning to end; all along | HSK 3 |
| 原始 | yuánshǐ | first; original | HSK 5 |
| 创始人 | chuàngshǐrén | creator; founder; initiator | HSK 7-9 |
| 自始至终 | zìshǐ-zhìzhōng | from start to finish (idiom) | HSK 7-9 |
| 起始 | qǐshǐ | to begin; to start; at first; initially | |
| 初始 | chūshǐ | initial; starting (point) | |
| 始祖 | shǐzǔ | primogenitor; founder of a school or trade | |
| 原始人 | yuánshǐrén | primitive man; prehistoric human |
始 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 始
How many strokes are in 始?
始 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 始 mean?
始 (shǐ) means to begin, to start; beginning. A common word with it is 开始 (kāishǐ), meaning "to begin; to start; beginning; start".
How do you pronounce 始?
始 is pronounced shǐ, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 始?
The radical of 始 is 女, which carries the idea of "woman". Dictionaries list 始 under this radical.
Is 始 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 始 is part of the HSK 3 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 3.
What is the difference between 开始 and 始终?
开始 (kāishǐ) means to begin or the beginning. 始终 (shǐzhōng) means from beginning to end or all along, as in 他始终没说话 (tā shǐzhōng méi shuōhuà), he never said a word the whole time.
Can 始 mean 'only then'?
Yes, in formal or classical style 始 can mean 'only then', similar to 才 (cái). For example, 至此始知 means 'only at this point did (I) realize'. In everyday speech, people use 才 instead.