室 meaning and stroke order
Room; work unit; grave
How to write 室, 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.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
Meaning of 室
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- room
- work unit
- grave
- scabbard
- family or clan
- one of the 28 constellations of Chinese astronomy
How 室 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Roof.
宀 gives the meaning and 至 hints at the sound.
Radical: 宀 (roof), shared by 67 characters on this site.
How to remember 室
室 is a roof 宀 on top of 至 (zhì, to arrive). Picture the place you arrive at when you get under the roof: a room.
室 rarely stands alone in modern speech. It usually appears at the end of words for a specific kind of room, such as 教室 (jiàoshì) classroom, 卧室 (wòshì) bedroom, and 办公室 (bàngōngshì) office. Example: 我在办公室。(Wǒ zài bàngōngshì.) I am in the office.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 室 (shì) with 屋 (wū, house or room) because both contain 至. 室 has the roof 宀 on top, while 屋 has 尸 on top. Also note that 室 is fourth tone, unlike 实 (shí) in 实验室 (shíyànshì), which is second tone.
Common words with 室
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 办公室 | bàngōngshì | office; business premises | HSK 2 |
| 教室 | jiàoshì | classroom | HSK 2 |
| 实验室 | shíyànshì | laboratory | HSK 3 |
| 卧室 | wòshì | bedroom | HSK 5 |
| 阅览室 | yuèlǎnshì | reading room | HSK 5 |
| 地下室 | dìxiàshì | basement; cellar | HSK 6 |
| 浴室 | yùshì | bathroom; shower room (CL:間|间[jian1]); bathhouse | HSK 7-9 |
| 皇室 | huángshì | royal family; imperial household | HSK 7-9 |
| 更衣室 | gēngyīshì | change room; dressing room; locker room; (euphemism) toilet | HSK 7-9 |
| 手术室 | shǒushùshì | operating room | HSK 7-9 |
| 温室 | wēnshì | greenhouse | HSK 7-9 |
| 寝室 | qǐnshì | bedroom; dormitory | HSK 7-9 |
| 演播室 | yǎnbōshì | broadcasting studio | HSK 7-9 |
| 室友 | shìyǒu | roommate |
室 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 室
How many strokes are in 室?
室 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 室 mean?
室 (shì) means room; work unit; grave. A common word with it is 办公室 (bàngōngshì), meaning "office; business premises".
How do you pronounce 室?
室 is pronounced shì, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 室?
The radical of 室 is 宀, which carries the idea of "roof". Dictionaries list 室 under this radical.
Is 室 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 室 is part of the HSK 2 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 2.
What is the difference between 室 and 房间?
房间 (fángjiān) is the everyday word for a room, and you can use it alone. 室 is more formal and mostly works as a word ending for a room with a function, like 浴室 (yùshì) bathroom or 阅览室 (yuèlǎnshì) reading room.
Can 室 refer to people instead of a place?
Yes. In some words 室 means a family or household, as in 皇室 (huángshì), the royal family. It can also name a work unit inside an organization, similar to a section or office.