寇 meaning and stroke order
Bandit, thief; enemy; to invade
How to write 寇, 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.
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Meaning of 寇
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to invade
- to plunder
- bandit
- foe
- enemy
- old variant of 寇[kou4]
How 寇 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. Bandits mugging 攴 a person 元 in his home 宀.
Radical: 宀 (roof), shared by 67 characters on this site.
How to remember 寇
Under the roof 宀 of a house, someone strikes 攴 a person 元. A bandit breaking into a home and attacking the owner is 寇 (kòu), a bandit or invader.
寇 is a literary, formal word and mostly appears in set phrases, history, and idioms rather than everyday speech. Common words include 敌寇 (dí kòu, enemy invaders) and 海寇 (hǎi kòu, pirates). Example: 胜者为王，败者为寇。(Shèng zhě wéi wáng, bài zhě wéi kòu.) The winner becomes king, the loser is called a bandit.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 寇 with 冠 (guān/guàn, crown, champion), since both contain 元 under a cover. 冠 has the flat cover 冖 and the hand 寸, while 寇 has the roof 宀 with a dot on top and 攴 on the right.
Characters that contain 寇
Learning 寇 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 寇
How many strokes are in 寇?
寇 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 寇 mean?
寇 (kòu) means bandit, thief; enemy; to invade.
How do you pronounce 寇?
寇 is pronounced kòu, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 寇?
The radical of 寇 is 宀, which carries the idea of "roof". Dictionaries list 寇 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 寇?
The traditional form of 寇 is 㓂 and 宼. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 寇 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 寇 used as a surname?
Yes, 寇 (Kòu) is a Chinese surname. A famous example is 寇准 (Kòu Zhǔn), a chancellor of the Song dynasty.
What is the difference between 寇 and 盗 (dào)?
盗 is the general word for a thief or stealing, as in 盗窃 (dàoqiè, theft). 寇 suggests armed bandits or invading enemies who attack by force, often in a military or historical sense.