赦 meaning and stroke order
To forgive, to pardon, to remit
How to write 赦, stroke by stroke
11 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 赦
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to pardon (a convict)
How 赦 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Let go.
攵 gives the meaning and 赤 hints at the sound.
Radical: 赤 (red), shared by 5 characters on this site.
How to remember 赦
赦 is built from 赤 (chì), which gives the sound, and 攵, a hand holding a stick that shows action. Picture a hand putting down the stick and letting the prisoner go: that action is a pardon.
赦 (shè) is a formal word, mostly used for legal or official pardons and in religious or literary contexts. It rarely stands alone in speech and usually appears in words like 赦免 (shèmiǎn) and 特赦 (tèshè). Example: 国王赦免了他。(Guówáng shèmiǎnle tā.) The king pardoned him.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 赦 with 赫 (hè, grand), since both contain 赤. Also, the reading is shè, not chì, even though 赤 is the phonetic part.
Common words with 赦
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 赦免 | shèmiǎn | to pardon; to absolve | |
| 特赦 | tèshè | to grant a special pardon |
Characters that contain 赦
Learning 赦 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 赦
How many strokes are in 赦?
赦 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 赦 mean?
赦 (shè) means to forgive, to pardon, to remit. A common word with it is 赦免 (shèmiǎn), meaning "to pardon; to absolve".
How do you pronounce 赦?
赦 is pronounced shè, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 赦?
The radical of 赦 is 赤, which carries the idea of "red". Dictionaries list 赦 under this radical.
Can I use 赦 to forgive a friend in everyday conversation?
Not really. For everyday forgiveness, use 原谅 (yuánliàng), as in 请原谅我 (qǐng yuánliàng wǒ), please forgive me. 赦 sounds legal or dramatic.
What does the idiom 罪不可赦 mean?
罪不可赦 (zuì bù kě shè) means a crime so serious it cannot be pardoned. It is used to describe unforgivable wrongdoing, often in news or writing.