础 meaning and stroke order
Foundation stone, plinth; basis
How to write 础, stroke by stroke
10 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 础
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- foundation
- base
How 础 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Stone.
石 gives the meaning and 出 hints at the sound.
Radical: 石 (stone), shared by 114 characters on this site.
How to remember 础
础 combines 石 (shí, stone) on the left with 出 (chū) on the right, which gives the sound. Picture a stone that sticks out (出) at the bottom of a pillar: that stone is the base everything rests on.
础 almost never appears alone in modern Chinese. You will meet it in 基础 (jīchǔ), meaning foundation or basic, and in longer words built on it like 基础设施 (jīchǔ shèshī), infrastructure. Example: 他的中文基础很好。(Tā de Zhōngwén jīchǔ hěn hǎo.) His Chinese foundation is very solid.
Common mistake: Learners often read 础 as chū because of the phonetic part 出, but the tone is third tone: chǔ. In 基础 it is said jīchǔ, not jīchū.
Common words with 础
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 基础 | jīchǔ | base; foundation; basis; basic; fundamental | HSK 3 |
| 基础设施 | jīchǔshèshī | infrastructure |
础 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 础
How many strokes are in 础?
础 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 础 mean?
础 (chǔ) means foundation stone, plinth; basis. A common word with it is 基础 (jīchǔ), meaning "base; foundation; basis; basic; fundamental".
How do you pronounce 础?
础 is pronounced chǔ, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 础?
The radical of 础 is 石, which carries the idea of "stone". Dictionaries list 础 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 础?
The traditional form of 础 is 礎. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 础 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 础 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 础 is part of the HSK 3 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 3.
Can 基础 be used as an adjective meaning basic?
Yes. 基础 can describe things directly, as in 基础知识 (jīchǔ zhīshi), basic knowledge, or 基础课 (jīchǔ kè), foundational course. It works like the English word basic in these phrases.
What is the difference between 基础 and 根本?
基础 (jīchǔ) is the base something is built on, like skills or a building's foundation. 根本 (gēnběn) means the root or essence of something, and as an adverb it means at all, as in 我根本不知道 (wǒ gēnběn bù zhīdào), I have no idea at all.