话 meaning and stroke order
Dialect; language; spoken words
How to write 话, stroke by stroke
8 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
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- 8
Meaning of 话
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- dialect
- language
- spoken words
- speech
- talk
- words
How 话 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A spoken 讠 tongue 舌; 舌 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 讠 (words), shared by 144 characters on this site.
How to remember 话
On the left is 讠, the speech radical, and on the right is 舌 (shé), a tongue. Picture a tongue moving to make speech, and you have 话 (huà), talk or words.
话 is a noun meaning words, speech, or a way of speaking. It appears in very common words like 说话 (shuōhuà, to speak), 电话 (diànhuà, phone), and 普通话 (pǔtōnghuà, Mandarin). Example: 我不会说上海话。(Wǒ bú huì shuō Shànghǎi huà.) I can't speak Shanghainese.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 话 with 活 (huó, to live), which has the same 舌 but the water radical 氵 instead of the speech radical 讠. Also, 话 is a noun, so say 说话 (shuōhuà) for 'to talk', not 话 alone as a verb.
Common words with 话
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 电话 | diànhuà | telephone; phone call | HSK 1 |
| 说话 | shuōhuà | to speak; to say | HSK 1 |
| 打电话 | dǎ diànhuà | to make a telephone call | HSK 1 |
| 的话 | dehuà | if (coming after a conditional clause) | HSK 2 |
| 讲话 | jiǎnghuà | a speech; to speak | HSK 2 |
| 笑话 | xiàohua | joke; jest; to laugh at; to mock | HSK 2 |
| 对话 | duìhuà | to talk (with sb); dialogue; conversation | HSK 2 |
| 普通话 | pǔtōnghuà | Putonghua; standard Mandarin | HSK 2 |
| 笑话儿 | xiàohuar | erhua form of 笑話|笑话[xiao4 hua5] | HSK 2 |
| 谈话 | tánhuà | to talk (with sb); to have a conversation | HSK 3 |
| 话题 | huàtí | subject (of a talk or conversation); topic | HSK 3 |
| 话剧 | huàjù | stage play; modern drama | HSK 3 |
| 神话 | shénhuà | legend; fairy tale | HSK 4 |
| 童话 | tónghuà | children's fairy tales | HSK 4 |
话 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 话
How many strokes are in 话?
话 is written with 8 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 话 mean?
话 (huà) means dialect; language; spoken words. A common word with it is 电话 (diànhuà), meaning "telephone; phone call".
How do you pronounce 话?
话 is pronounced huà, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 话?
The radical of 话 is 讠, which carries the idea of "words". Dictionaries list 话 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 话?
The traditional form of 话 is 話 and 諙. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 话 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 话 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 话 is part of the HSK 1 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 1.
What is the difference between 话 and 语?
话 (huà) is the everyday word for spoken words or a way of speaking, as in 说话 or 上海话. 语 (yǔ) is more formal and usually means a language as a system, as in 汉语 (Hànyǔ) or 英语 (Yīngyǔ).
How is 的话 (dehuà) used?
的话 goes at the end of a condition to mean 'if'. It is often paired with 如果 (rúguǒ): 如果下雨的话，我不去。(Rúguǒ xià yǔ dehuà, wǒ bú qù.) If it rains, I won't go. In 的话, 话 is said in the neutral tone.