拾 meaning and stroke order
To pick up; to collate or arrange; ten (banker's anti-fraud numeral)
How to write 拾, 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.
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Meaning of 拾
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to pick up
- to collate or arrange
- ten (banker's anti-fraud numeral)
- to ascend in light steps
How 拾 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. To gather 合 things in one's hands 扌.
Radical: 扌 (hand), shared by 342 characters on this site.
How to remember 拾
拾 combines the hand radical 扌 with 合 (hé, to come together). Picture your hand bringing scattered things together as you pick them up off the floor.
拾 is most common in the word 收拾 (shōushi), to tidy up or pack, where 拾 is said in the neutral tone. On its own it appears in phrases like 拾起 (shíqǐ, to pick up), and on checks and receipts it is written instead of 十 so the number cannot be altered. Example: 你快把房间收拾一下。 (Nǐ kuài bǎ fángjiān shōushi yíxià.) Hurry up and tidy your room.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 拾 with 给 (gěi), which has the same 合 on the right but the silk radical 纟 on the left. Remember that picking up needs a hand 扌.
Common words with 拾
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 收拾 | shōushi | to put in order; to tidy up | HSK 5 |
| 重拾 | chóngshí | to pick up (a theme etc); to regain (confidence) | |
| 不可收拾 | bùkěshōushi | (idiom) irremediable; unmanageable; out of hand; hopeless | |
| 收拾残局 | shōushicánjú | to clear up the mess; to pick up the pieces |
拾 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 拾
How many strokes are in 拾?
拾 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 拾 mean?
拾 (shí) means to pick up; to collate or arrange; ten (banker's anti-fraud numeral). A common word with it is 收拾 (shōushi), meaning "to put in order; to tidy up".
How do you pronounce 拾?
拾 is pronounced shí, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 拾?
The radical of 拾 is 扌, which carries the idea of "hand". Dictionaries list 拾 under this radical.
Is 拾 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 拾 is part of the HSK 5 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why is 拾 used for the number ten?
In formal financial writing, Chinese uses complex numerals like 壹, 贰, and 拾 so that simple strokes cannot be added to change the amount. 拾 sounds the same as 十 (shí), so it serves as the anti-fraud form of ten.
What is the difference between 拾 and 捡 (jiǎn)?
Both mean to pick up something from the ground. 捡 is more everyday and spoken, as in 捡钱 (jiǎn qián, to find money on the ground), while 拾 sounds more written or formal, as in 拾金不昧 (shí jīn bú mèi, to return lost money one finds).