戰 meaning and stroke order
War, fighting, battle
How to write 戰, stroke by stroke
16 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 戰
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to fight
- fight
- war
- battle
How 戰 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Spear.
戈 gives the meaning and 單 hints at the sound.
Radical: 戈 (spear), shared by 34 characters on this site.
How to remember 戰
戰 is a pictophonetic character. The right side 戈 (gē, spear) gives the meaning of fighting, and the left side 單 (dān) is the sound part, so picture a single 單 soldier raising a spear 戈 to go into battle.
戰 means war or to fight, and it mostly appears in compound words like 戰爭 (zhànzhēng, war) and 挑戰 (tiǎozhàn, challenge). Example: 他們戰勝了對手。(Tāmen zhànshèng le duìshǒu.) They defeated their opponent.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes read 戰 as dān because of the phonetic part 單, but it is pronounced zhàn with a falling fourth tone. Also, do not confuse the 戈 on the right with 弋 (yì), which is missing the bottom-left hook stroke.
Common words with 戰
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 戰爭 | zhànzhēng | war; conflict | HSK 4 |
| 戰鬥 | zhàndòu | to fight; to engage in combat | HSK 4 |
| 挑戰 | tiǎozhàn | to challenge; to take on a challenge; a challenge | HSK 4 |
| 戰士 | zhànshì | fighter; soldier | HSK 4 |
| 戰勝 | zhànshèng | to prevail over; to defeat | HSK 4 |
| 作戰 | zuòzhàn | combat; to fight | HSK 6 |
| 戰場 | zhànchǎng | battlefield | HSK 6 |
| 戰術 | zhànshù | tactics | HSK 6 |
| 戰略 | zhànlüè | strategy | HSK 6 |
| 戰友 | zhànyǒu | comrade-in-arms; battle companion | HSK 6 |
| 冷戰 | lěngzhàn | cold war; (fig.) strained relationship | HSK 7-9 |
| 戰役 | zhànyì | military campaign | |
| 開戰 | kāizhàn | to start a war; to make war | |
| 大戰 | dàzhàn | war; to wage war |
Questions about 戰
How many strokes are in 戰?
戰 is written with 16 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 戰 mean?
戰 (zhàn) means war, fighting, battle. A common word with it is 战争 (zhànzhēng), meaning "war; conflict".
How do you pronounce 戰?
戰 is pronounced zhàn, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 戰?
The radical of 戰 is 戈, which carries the idea of "spear". Dictionaries list 戰 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 戰?
戰 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 战, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Why do I see 战 instead of 戰 in many textbooks?
战 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore, while 戰 is used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. They mean the same thing and are both pronounced zhàn. The common words listed here, like 战争 and 战斗, are written with 戰 in traditional script.
Does 戰 only refer to real wars?
No. It is often used figuratively for competition or struggle. 挑戰 (tiǎozhàn) means a challenge in everyday life, and 戰勝 (zhànshèng) can mean overcoming an illness or a difficulty, not just an enemy.