賬 meaning and stroke order
Accounts, bills; credit, debt
How to write 賬, stroke by stroke
15 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 賬
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- account
- bill
- debt
How 賬 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Money.
貝 gives the meaning and 長 hints at the sound.
Radical: 貝 (sea shell), shared by 62 characters on this site.
How to remember 賬
賬 combines 貝 (shell, an old symbol of money) with 長 (cháng/zhǎng), which gives the sound. Picture a long list of money owed: money 貝 plus a long 長 record makes an account or bill.
賬 (simplified 账) appears in words about money records, like 賬單 (zhàngdān, bill), 賬戶 (zhànghù, account) and 結賬 (jiézhàng, to pay the bill). In a restaurant you can say 服務員，結賬。(Fúwùyuán, jiézhàng.) Waiter, the bill please.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 賬 (zhàng, account) with 帳 (zhàng, tent or curtain), which uses 巾 (cloth) instead of 貝. In older texts 帳 was sometimes used for accounts, but the standard modern choice is 賬, and 账 in simplified.
Common words with 賬
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 賬戶 | zhànghù | (bank, computer etc) account | HSK 6 |
| 賬單 | zhàngdān | bill | HSK 7-9 |
| 賬號 | zhànghào | account number; account; username | HSK 7-9 |
| 算賬 | suànzhàng | (accounting) to balance the books; to do the accounts; (fig.) to settle an account; to get | HSK 7-9 |
| 混賬 | hùnzhàng | shameful; absolutely disgraceful! | |
| 付賬 | fùzhàng | to settle an account | |
| 結賬 | jiézhàng | to settle accounts; to pay the bill | |
| 賬本 | zhàngběn | account book | |
| 轉賬 | zhuǎnzhàng | to transfer (money to a bank account) | |
| 賬目 | zhàngmù | accounts; financial records; accounting entry |
Questions about 賬
How many strokes are in 賬?
賬 is written with 15 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 賬 mean?
賬 (zhàng) means accounts, bills; credit, debt. A common word with it is 账户 (zhànghù), meaning "(bank, computer etc) account".
How do you pronounce 賬?
賬 is pronounced zhàng, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 賬?
The radical of 賬 is 貝, which carries the idea of "sea shell". Dictionaries list 賬 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 賬?
賬 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 账, used in mainland China and Singapore.
What does 算賬 mean besides doing the accounts?
算賬 (suànzhàng) literally means to balance the books. Figuratively it means to settle a score with someone, as in 我以後再跟你算賬 (I'll settle this with you later).
Is 混賬 a strong insult?
Yes. 混賬 (hùnzhàng) means disgraceful or a scoundrel and is used as an angry insult, often in dramas. Avoid using it casually.