Meaning of 射
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to shoot
- to launch
- to allude to
- radio- (chemistry)
- old variant of 射[she4]
How to use 射
射 is mostly used in compound words about shooting, launching, or sending something outward, like light, rays, or liquid. It appears in sports, military, science, and medical contexts. Example: 火箭发射成功了。(Huǒjiàn fāshè chénggōng le.) The rocket launch was a success.
射 (shè) is made of 身 (shēn, body) on the left and 寸 (cùn, hand or measure) on the right. Picture a person bracing their body while the hand pulls and releases an arrow.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 射 (shè) with 谢 (xiè, to thank), which contains 射 plus the speech radical 讠. Also watch the tone: 射 is fourth tone shè, not third tone shě like 舍 in 舍得.
射 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
射 shè · to shoot · 10 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 射.
| 发射 | fāshè | to shoot (a projectile); to fire (a rocket) |
| 射击 | shèjī | to shoot; to fire (a gun) |
| 注射 | zhùshè | injection; to inject |
| 辐射 | fúshè | to radiate; radiation |
| 投射 | tóushè | to throw (a projectile); to cast (light) |
| 折射 | zhéshè | to refract; refraction |
| 射杀 | shèshā | to shoot dead (with a gun, or bow and arrow) |
| 射中 | shèzhòng | to hit the target |
| 反射 | fǎnshè | to reflect; reflection (from a mirror etc) |
| 射程 | shèchéng | range; reach |
| 射手 | shèshǒu | archer; shooter |
| 射线 | shèxiàn | ray |
Questions about 射
What does 射 mean?
射 (shè) means "to shoot; to launch" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 射?
射 is made of 1 character: 射 (10 strokes). That is 10 strokes in total.
Is 射 an HSK word?
Yes. 射 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
Can 射 be used alone as a verb?
Yes, especially in sports and casual speech, as in 射门 (shèmén, to shoot at the goal) or 他射了一箭 (tā shè le yí jiàn, he shot an arrow). In most other cases it sits inside a compound like 射击 or 发射.
How is 射 used in science words?
射 describes energy or light going outward, so it shows up in 辐射 (fúshè, radiation), 折射 (zhéshè, refraction), and 反射 (fǎnshè, reflection). In chemistry it can also mean radio-, as in radioactive substances.