聿 meaning and stroke order
Writing brush, pencil; thereupon
How to write 聿, stroke by stroke
6 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
Meaning of 聿
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (arch. introductory particle)
- then
- and then
How 聿 is built
Pictographic character. A hand 彐 holding a brush; compare 肀.
How to remember 聿
Picture a hand 彐 gripping a brush, with the long vertical stroke as the brush handle running down through the hand. That hand-and-brush image is 聿 (yù), the old character for a writing brush.
聿 is almost never used alone in modern Chinese. You mostly meet it as a component in characters about writing and drawing, such as 笔 (bǐ, traditional 筆), 书 (shū, traditional 書) and 画 (huà, traditional 畫). In classical texts it can also be an introductory particle meaning "then". An example is 岁聿其莫 (suì yù qí mò), "the year then draws to its close", from the Shijing.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 聿 with 肀, which is the same hand-and-brush shape without the bottom part, and with 津 (jīn) or 律 (lǜ), which contain 聿 plus another part. Do not read every character containing 聿 as yù. 律 is lǜ and 建 is jiàn.
Characters that contain 聿
Learning 聿 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 聿
How many strokes are in 聿?
聿 is written with 6 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 聿 mean?
聿 (yù) means writing brush, pencil; thereupon.
How do you pronounce 聿?
聿 is pronounced yù, in the fourth tone (falling).
Which common characters contain 聿?
You can see it in 律 (lǜ, law, rule), 建 (jiàn, to build), 津 (jīn, ferry crossing) and 肆 (sì, unrestrained). In traditional forms it also appears in 筆 (bǐ, brush) and 書 (shū, book).
Is 聿 used in modern names or words?
It is rare in everyday vocabulary, but it sometimes appears in personal names because of its scholarly, literary feel. In ordinary speech the word for brush or pen is 笔 (bǐ), not 聿.