酒 meaning and stroke order
Wine (esp. rice wine); liquor; spirits
How to write 酒, stroke by stroke
10 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
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
Meaning of 酒
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- wine (esp. rice wine)
- liquor
- spirits
- alcoholic beverage
How 酒 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A jar 酉 of wine 氵; 酉 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 酉 (wine), shared by 67 characters on this site.
How to remember 酒
Picture a clay jar 酉 with liquid 氵 splashing beside it. A jar of liquid that people drink at celebrations is 酒 (jiǔ), alcohol.
酒 (jiǔ) covers almost any alcoholic drink, and it usually appears in compounds like 啤酒 (píjiǔ, beer), 红酒 (hóngjiǔ, red wine) and 白酒 (báijiǔ, baijiu). The common verb phrase is 喝酒 (hējiǔ), to drink alcohol. Example: 他不喝酒。(Tā bù hējiǔ.) He doesn't drink.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 酒 (jiǔ) with 洒 (sǎ, to sprinkle), which has 西 on the right instead of 酉. Check for the extra horizontal stroke inside 酉. Also keep the third tone in jiǔ so it does not sound like 九 said flatly or 就 (jiù).
Common words with 酒
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 酒店 | jiǔdiàn | wine shop; pub (public house) | HSK 2 |
| 啤酒 | píjiǔ | beer (loanword) | HSK 3 |
| 红酒 | hóngjiǔ | red wine | HSK 3 |
| 酒吧 | jiǔbā | bar (place to buy drinks) | HSK 4 |
| 酒鬼 | jiǔguǐ | drunkard | HSK 5 |
| 葡萄酒 | pútaojiǔ | (grape) wine | HSK 5 |
| 白酒 | báijiǔ | baijiu, a spirit usually distilled from sorghum; (Tw) white wine (abbr. for 白葡萄酒[bai2 pu2 | HSK 5 |
| 酒水 | jiǔshuǐ | alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages (e.g. on a menu) | HSK 6 |
| 酒精 | jiǔjīng | (coll.) ethanol; ethyl alcohol | HSK 7-9 |
| 酗酒 | xùjiǔ | heavy drinking; to get drunk | HSK 7-9 |
| 敬酒 | jìngjiǔ | to toast; to propose a toast | HSK 7-9 |
| 喜酒 | xǐjiǔ | wedding feast; liquor drunk at a wedding feast | HSK 7-9 |
| 酒楼 | jiǔlóu | restaurant | HSK 7-9 |
| 茅台酒 | Máotáijiǔ | maotai (a strong spirit produced in Guizhou) | HSK 7-9 |
酒 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 酒
How many strokes are in 酒?
酒 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 酒 mean?
酒 (jiǔ) means wine (esp. rice wine); liquor; spirits. A common word with it is 酒店 (jiǔdiàn), meaning "wine shop; pub (public house)".
How do you pronounce 酒?
酒 is pronounced jiǔ, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 酒?
The radical of 酒 is 酉, which carries the idea of "wine". Dictionaries list 酒 under this radical.
Is 酒 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 酒 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 1.
Does 酒店 mean a liquor store or a hotel?
In modern Mainland usage, 酒店 (jiǔdiàn) most often means a hotel, especially a nicer one, as in 五星级酒店 (a five-star hotel). The older meaning of wine shop or pub still appears but is less common.
Is 白酒 white wine?
In Mainland China, 白酒 (báijiǔ) means a strong clear spirit usually distilled from sorghum, not white wine. To say white wine, use 白葡萄酒 (bái pútaojiǔ), though in Taiwan 白酒 can mean white wine.