拭 meaning and stroke order
To wipe away stains with a cloth
How to write 拭, 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 拭
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to wipe
How 拭 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Hand.
扌 gives the meaning and 式 hints at the sound.
Radical: 扌 (hand), shared by 342 characters on this site.
How to remember 拭
拭 is a hand 扌 plus 式 (shì), which gives the sound. Picture your hand moving in a set pattern, like a 式 (style or method), as you wipe a surface clean.
拭 is a formal, written word and rarely stands alone in speech. It mostly appears in set words like 擦拭 (cāshì, to wipe clean) and the idiom 拭目以待 (shìmùyǐdài, to wait and see). Example: 我们拭目以待。(Wǒmen shìmùyǐdài.) We will wait and see.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 拭 with 试 (shì, to try). They sound identical, but 试 has the speech radical 讠, while 拭 has the hand radical 扌 because wiping is done by hand.
Common words with 拭
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 拭目以待 | shìmùyǐdài | lit. to wipe one's eyes and wait (idiom); to wait and see | |
| 擦拭 | cāshì | to wipe clean |
拭 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 拭
How many strokes are in 拭?
拭 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 拭 mean?
拭 (shì) means to wipe away stains with a cloth. A common word with it is 拭目以待 (shìmùyǐdài), meaning "lit. to wipe one's eyes and wait (idiom); to wait and see".
How do you pronounce 拭?
拭 is pronounced shì, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 拭?
The radical of 拭 is 扌, which carries the idea of "hand". Dictionaries list 拭 under this radical.
Can I use 拭 by itself to say "wipe the table"?
Not usually. In everyday speech people say 擦桌子 (cā zhuōzi). 拭 sounds literary, so it fits written Chinese or set phrases like 擦拭.
Does 拭目以待 sound positive or negative?
It is neutral and means you are watching closely to see what happens. It can show hopeful interest, or in some contexts doubt, as in "we'll see if they really do it."