鞠 meaning and stroke order
To bow, to bend; to nourish, to rear
How to write 鞠, stroke by stroke
17 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 鞠
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to incline (one's torso); to bow
- leather ball used in ancient times
- (literary) to bring up; to rear
- Taiwan pr. [ju2]
How 鞠 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Leather.
革 gives the meaning and 匊 hints at the sound.
Radical: 革 (leather), shared by 25 characters on this site.
How to remember 鞠
鞠 is built from 革 (gé, leather) on the left and 匊 (jū) on the right, which gives the sound. Picture an ancient leather ball made of stitched hide, and a player bending down to pick it up.
Today 鞠 is used almost only in the word 鞠躬 (jūgōng), to bow, which is common in formal settings like ceremonies, performances, and apologies. Example: 他向观众鞠了一躬。(Tā xiàng guānzhòng jū le yì gōng.) He bowed to the audience.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 鞠 with 菊 (jú, chrysanthemum), which shares the same right side 匊 but has the grass radical 艹 on top instead of 革 on the left. Also note the tone: mainland Mandarin says jū with first tone, while Taiwan says jú with second tone.
Common words with 鞠
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 鞠躬 | jūgōng | to bow; (literary) to bend down | HSK 7-9 |
鞠 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 鞠
How many strokes are in 鞠?
鞠 is written with 17 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 鞠 mean?
鞠 (jū) means to bow, to bend; to nourish, to rear. A common word with it is 鞠躬 (jūgōng), meaning "to bow; (literary) to bend down".
How do you pronounce 鞠?
鞠 is pronounced jū, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 鞠?
The radical of 鞠 is 革, which carries the idea of "leather". Dictionaries list 鞠 under this radical.
Is 鞠 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 鞠 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why can 鞠躬 be split as 鞠了一躬?
鞠躬 behaves like a verb plus object, so other words can go in the middle. You can say 鞠了一躬 (bowed once) or 鞠三个躬 (bow three times).
What is 蹴鞠 (cùjū)?
蹴鞠 is an ancient Chinese ball game played by kicking a leather ball. It uses the old sense of 鞠 as a leather ball and is often described as an early form of football.