街 meaning and stroke order
Street
How to write 街, stroke by stroke
12 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 街
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- street
How 街 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Walk.
行 gives the meaning and 圭 hints at the sound.
Radical: 行 (to go), shared by 12 characters on this site.
How to remember 街
街 is 行 (xíng, to walk) split open with 圭 (guī) placed in the middle. Picture people walking on both sides of a road, with 圭 sitting in the center like a row of houses, and 圭 also hints at the sound.
街 usually appears in compounds such as 街道 (jiēdào), 大街 (dàjiē) and 街上 (jiēshang). 逛街 (guàngjiē) is a very common everyday word for going shopping or strolling around. Example: 周末我们去逛街吧。(Zhōumò wǒmen qù guàngjiē ba.) Let's go shopping this weekend.
Common mistake: Learners often write 圭 as a single 土, or forget that it is two 土 stacked on top of each other inside 行. Also keep the tone flat: jiē is first tone, unlike 姐 (jiě) or 借 (jiè).
Common words with 街
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 街道 | jiēdào | street; subdistrict | HSK 4 |
| 大街 | dàjiē | street; main street | HSK 6 |
| 街头 | jiētóu | street | HSK 6 |
| 大街小巷 | dàjiē-xiǎoxiàng | great streets and small alleys (idiom); everywhere in the city | HSK 7-9 |
| 临街 | línjiē | facing the street | HSK 7-9 |
| 街上 | jiēshang | on the street; in town | |
| 街区 | jiēqū | block; neighborhood | |
| 逛街 | guàngjiē | to take a walk; to window-shop | |
| 上街 | shàngjiē | to go onto the streets; to go shopping | |
| 街坊 | jiēfāng | neighborhood; neighbor | |
| 街舞 | jiēwǔ | street dance (e.g. breakdance) |
街 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 街
How many strokes are in 街?
街 is written with 12 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 街 mean?
街 (jiē) means street. A common word with it is 街道 (jiēdào), meaning "street; subdistrict".
How do you pronounce 街?
街 is pronounced jiē, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 街?
The radical of 街 is 行, which carries the idea of "to go". Dictionaries list 街 under this radical.
Is 街 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 街 is part of the HSK 2 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 2.
What is the difference between 街 and 路?
路 (lù) is a general word for road or route and is used in many street names, like 南京路. 街 (jiē) suggests a street lined with shops and houses where people walk and gather. Many city names use both, for example 中山路 and 王府井大街.
Does 街上 mean on the street or in town?
It can mean both. 在街上 (zài jiēshang) can mean literally on the street, or more loosely out and about in town, as in 街上人很多 (jiēshang rén hěn duō), there are lots of people out.