禾 meaning and stroke order
Cereal, grain, rice; plant, stalk
How to write 禾, 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 禾
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (bound form) grain plant; cereal crop
How 禾 is built
Pictographic character. A plant stalk with a sagging head.
How to remember 禾
禾 (hé) is a picture of a grain plant whose heavy head droops over. The top stroke 丿 is the sagging ear of grain, and 木 below is the stalk and roots.
禾 is a bound form, so it rarely stands alone in modern speech and mostly appears in words like 禾苗 (hémiáo). It is also very common as a component in characters about crops and harvests, such as 秋 (qiū, autumn) and 种 (zhòng, to plant). Example: 田里的禾苗长得很好。(Tián lǐ de hémiáo zhǎng de hěn hǎo.) The seedlings in the field are growing well.
Common mistake: Learners often write 禾 as 木 (mù, tree) and forget the slanted stroke 丿 on top, or confuse it with 未 (wèi), which has a horizontal stroke instead. Also note the second tone: hé, the same sound as 和 and 河, so context matters.
Common words with 禾
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 禾苗 | hémiáo | seedling (of rice or other grain) | HSK 7-9 |
Characters that contain 禾
Learning 禾 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 禾
How many strokes are in 禾?
禾 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 禾 mean?
禾 (hé) means cereal, grain, rice; plant, stalk. A common word with it is 禾苗 (hémiáo), meaning "seedling (of rice or other grain)".
How do you pronounce 禾?
禾 is pronounced hé, in the second tone (rising).
Is 禾 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 禾 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do I recognize 禾 when it is part of another character?
On the left side it narrows, and its last stroke becomes a rising dot instead of a full falling stroke, as in 秋 (qiū) and 和 (hé). Characters with this part often relate to grain, harvest or taxes, like 税 (shuì, tax).
Is 禾 the same as 米 or 稻?
No. 禾 refers to the growing grain plant in general, 稻 (dào) is specifically the rice plant, and 米 (mǐ) is the hulled rice grain you cook. Think field, crop, then kitchen.