甲 meaning and stroke order
First of the ten Heavenly Stems 十天干[shi2 tian1 gan1]; (used for an unspecified person or thing); first (in a list, as a party to a contract etc)
How to write 甲, stroke by stroke
5 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
Meaning of 甲
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- first of the ten Heavenly Stems 十天干[shi2 tian1 gan1]
- (used for an unspecified person or thing)
- first (in a list, as a party to a contract etc)
- letter "A" or roman "I" in list "A, B, C", or "I, II, III" etc
- armor plating
- shell or carapace
How 甲 is built
Components of the character.
Radical: 田 (field), shared by 46 characters on this site.
How to remember 甲
甲 (jiǎ) looks like a field 田 with a line pushing down out of the bottom, like a shell or shield with a handle sticking out. Picture a hard shell protecting what is inside, and it is also the first item, like the letter A.
甲 appears in words for hard coverings, such as 指甲 (zhǐjia, fingernail), 盔甲 (kuījiǎ, armor) and 甲虫 (jiǎchóng, beetle). It also marks the first item or party in a list or contract, and can stand for an unnamed person, like "Person A". Example: 甲方和乙方签了合同。(Jiǎfāng hé yǐfāng qiān le hétong.) Party A and Party B signed the contract.
Common mistake: Learners mix up 甲 (jiǎ) with 申 (shēn) and 由 (yóu). In 甲 the vertical line sticks out only at the bottom, in 由 only at the top, and in 申 at both ends. Also note that in 指甲 the 甲 is usually read in the neutral tone, zhǐjia.
Common words with 甲
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 指甲 | zhǐjia | fingernail | HSK 5 |
| 甲板 | jiǎbǎn | deck (of a ship or boat) | |
| 盔甲 | kuījiǎ | armor; body armor and helmet | |
| 装甲 | zhuāngjiǎ | vehicle armor | |
| 甲虫 | jiǎchóng | beetle | |
| 装甲车 | zhuāngjiǎchē | armored car | |
| 指甲油 | zhǐjiayóu | nail polish | |
| 甲烷 | jiǎwán | methane CH4 | |
| 甲子 | jiǎzǐ | first year of the sixty-year cycle (where each year is numbered with one of the 10 heavenl | |
| 马甲 | mǎjiǎ | corset; sockpuppet (Internet slang) | |
| 修指甲 | xiūzhǐjia | manicure | |
| 铠甲 | kǎijiǎ | armor | |
| 美甲 | měijiǎ | manicure and-or pedicure | |
| 机甲 | jījiǎ | mecha (human-operated robots in Japanese manga) |
甲 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 甲
Learning 甲 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 甲
How many strokes are in 甲?
甲 is written with 5 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 甲 mean?
甲 (jiǎ) means first of the ten Heavenly Stems 十天干[shi2 tian1 gan1]; (used for an unspecified person or thing); first (in a list, as a party to a contract etc). A common word with it is 指甲 (zhǐjia), meaning "fingernail".
How do you pronounce 甲?
甲 is pronounced jiǎ, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 甲?
The radical of 甲 is 田, which carries the idea of "field". Dictionaries list 甲 under this radical.
Is 甲 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 甲 is part of the HSK 5 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 2.
How do you say "A, B, C" in an ordered list using Chinese characters?
Chinese often uses the Heavenly Stems in order: 甲 (jiǎ), 乙 (yǐ), 丙 (bǐng), 丁 (dīng). So 甲 is like A or I, 乙 is like B or II, and so on. You see this in contracts, exam grades and outlines.
Why does 甲 appear in chemistry words like 甲烷?
In organic chemistry, 甲 marks a compound with one carbon atom, following its meaning of "first". So 甲烷 (jiǎwán) is methane, and 甲醇 (jiǎchún) is methanol.