S**fliR
Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Strokes of Chinese Characters (A)
Chinese characters are written in a shape of square, therefore they are known
as square-shaped characters. Each character consists of various strokes formed by
different dots or lines as the basic components.
There are six basic strokes of Chinese characters. They are the horizontal
stroke, the vertical stroke, the left-falling stroke, the right-falling stroke, the dot
and the rising stroke. Other types of strokes are derived from the strokes
mentioned above, and thus known as the derived strokes.
1

3fcfc««W o
The Order of Strokes for writing Chinese Characters (A)
The great majority of Chinese characters are formed by more than two
strokes. In writing them two points should be taken notice of:
±t. _
The strokes can only be written in certain directions. For example, the
horizontal stroke should only go from left to right. It would be wrong if it is done
otherwise. Similarly the vertical stroke can only be written from top to bottom,
never from bottom to top.
The strokes that are used to form a character should be written in a certain
order known as "stroke order", 'For instance, in writing -f*» the horizontal stroke
always goes before the vertical one.
*£>
¥WS
List of New Characters and Words
1. —
2. —
3. =.
4- ■+
5. X
yT
er
sari
shf
gong "■
one
two
three
ten
to work

O iX*iR^«*(±)
x^
6.J1
_hi£
7.+
- +
8.^
-t+
T^
+ +
9.-^
-4
■H*
*^
10. #
X#
#ik
11. yV
12. A
13.4-
—>f^A
14.it
4^
93*
15. T
Ti%-
16. tc
17.*
18. £
£n
19. ;*"
gongren
shang
shang ke
qian
yi qian
wu
shangwu
xiawu
zhongwu
nian
yl nian
mingnian
qunian
zud
gongzuo
zudye
ba
ren
ge
y 1 ge ren *
tian
jihtian
mingtian
xia
xia ke
liu
tou
guan
guan men
shao
worker
upward direction
to have class(es)
thousand
one thousand
noon
morning
afternoon
noon
year
one year
next year
last year
to do
work,to work
exercise, homework
eight
person
(a measure word)
a person
day, the sky
today
tomorrow
downward direction
to finish class, class dismissed
six
head
to close
to close a door
short of

nmmmsi* o
2*y
20.^
21. Jk
xjk
22.^
$*
23.*
-*
24.751
J3L^
25. ^tr
■£rA
26. £
I
duoshao
bu
ye
gongye
xing
gaoxing
gong
yigong
nan
Hanyu
nD
nOren
duo
how many, how much
not
line of business
industry
excitement
glad
altogether
total
Han, Chinese
Chinese (spoken language)
female
woman
too much, too many
The Strokes and Writing of the New Characters
The Basic Strokes of Chinese Characters
Horizontal Stroke
- (—) heng ^M£fi;&JS3ft
A horizontal stroke is written from left to right
(3
4

-o iR*iR^**(±)
o
-4-
i
yi
... ..j.—
i
one
—
i
—i— ■
i
i
1
_i
■ ;
3
!
The character goes straight forward from left to right along the central line
thin a square -lined frame.
er two
JJL-kSd- - - -f - 4- -4 - - -- - 4 4 4- -!■-■ -
The character begins with the top horizontal stroke, ends up with the longer
stroke underneath.
e
„-_p_..
*
"zt±~
san
"■^"
three
—j—---
—;—
—
.......
—,—
Of the three horizontal strokes the second one is the shortest, and the third one
is the longest. The spacing between each stroke is almost the same.
£
}
Vertical Stroke
1 U) shu flSJULhfilTfiJSb
A vertical stroke is written from top to bottom.

**»«&=? o-
OT
+ +-
shT
j
ten
i
In writing the character the horizontal stroke is written before the vertical
stroke. The two strokes cross one another.
el
gong to work
XA gongren worker
The top horizontal stroke is shorter than the lower one. The vertical stroke
intersects the horizontal one.
shang upward direction
_L^| shang ke to have class (es)
The short horizontal of _h is connected with the vertical on the right.
M
Left-falling Stroke
J
J (/) pie «&;&±fi|£TgJ5&
A left-falling stroke is written from the top right to the bottom left.

-o &*tR^i!3M±)
qian thousand
—4 yi qian one thousand
_£. ,4- _j£,_ _ 4_ 4 4 ! 1 ! L U
%-miii,ik%Jim&Tf&ftBt&&&,$lfaft'&mM¥Wi. !g*n]
*B&.
The first stroke of ^p, slightly slanting from the top right to the lower left,
links with the central vertical stroke.
»^F
o
wu noon
Jl^P shangwu morning
~F^f Xiawu afternoon
f^^p zhongwu noon
^MMM^4-4 1 -f- -f-
£-«I«:flIi&-46MMB
The first stroke of ^p is a short left-falling stroke that links with the top horizontal
s 0 e, an the r ' die horizontal tro is ssc by le central vertical stroke
O
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man year
-^^P yi nian one year
fJE^p mingnian next year
i^ qunian last year
*...&..Je. &. &-. J%- -f-.-.+ -i - — f~-4-...
The central vertic 1 stroke joins the top horizontal stroke without crossing it
<D#
zuo to do
Jiff gongzud work,to work
ff$L zuoye exercise, homework
7

*#««&* o-
###### ■#
It must be written from left to right. The radical i is another form of A-
ml m
Right-falling Stroke
J
A right-falling stroke is written from the top left to the bottom right with
increasing force.
• ^
i
t
t
t
[
[
L i-
r
r ...
i
i
)
l
j-
i
i
■ —i
■
—
Q) / V ba eight
^h
/V
[
L
i
—r -
i
|
i """
i
1
4..
<
—,—
—
■—
j
^3f^,#^,$r»ffl^D m-mm^nm^^^mn^^^m
&m*
The left-falling long stroke of A is written before the right-falling one.
©
A
yv
A,
ren
i
i
i
....
person
I
i
j
i
j
—
j
t
i
... _^...
h t-f "ng t e of A joins it right-falling stroke
A-
®y\
ge (a measure word)
—T*A yf ge ren a person
1^ A A
8

■o Sl¥iR5«*(±)
The vertical stroke of ^ goes down from somewhere near the connection of the
left-and right-falling strokes above.
© y\. tian day,the sky
^^ jlntion today
f$3z mmgtion tomorrow
i i JL t ! i i
ys^ ys~ vv >iv t ] if:
^ can be composed by adding a horizontal on t e top of 'jt.
}
The Dot
* {* ) dian fcALtlWFIi
The dot of a character begins from the top and slants to the right side with a
reinforced pause.
I
i
T~
......
....
.......
_.....
j
.....
—
(^ | xia downward direction
~FW xia ke to finish class*class dismissed
-
^___
f
f
i
-]
. !
1
i
I
|
The dot of HF is put on the right of the verticle stroke.
* -
© /N
Nu six
-*-
s\
—-j— ■
1
j
m-Q&»&±mGT. m^m^m. %mm&im-%]m&m,\
9

The first stroke of 7\ is a dot slanting towards the right side. Its third stroke is
a left-falling stroke. The fourth stroke, another dot, is a bit longer than the first
one known as a long dot.
^ ^7^ tOU head
-$k 4: % $?%+
.4_—3:rz==
The first dot of ^ is placed above the second dot. It would be wrong if they are
arranged side by side. Its last stroke is a Ion dot.
<D
*
guan to close
^n guan men to close a door
£ I: £ £ & £
The second stroke of ^c is a left-falling short stroke. Its fifth stroke is a lefHall-
ing one that is joined with the first horizontal stroke.
S* is shao short of
^i!? duoshao how many, how much
>
t
t
t
—j—
—1—
1
1
I
i
—]___
-- -—
$m*ntm>wz-&km
(=!!*£■**&. ^m&m
The writing of il? begins with the central vertical stroke followed by the left-
falling stroke. Its third stroke is not a right-falling stroke, but a dot. The final
s oke is ' ft-f" ling I ng troke.
0 ^
bu not
' '• l i 1 it:
~T ~T ~T ~ZZ 1 1
^]X ^X y[N sfs T 3 7 "j "] — ■■
10

The final stroke of ?F is not a right-falling toe, a ig ot
^J .Mr „ y£ line of business
TAV gongye industry
-o Bl*iR51S*(J:)
JjU- AU* dh J\s J\t ^11^5
lip. ^n j$ti jpi 411 | f 7 i f
The writing of ik begins with the two parallel vertical strokes in the centre. Its
third stroke is a dot, the fourth stroke is a left-falling stroke. The final stroke is a
horizorita joining t two v ticals.
X2J /*\ xmg excitement
#
itfX gaoxing
^
glad
i
i
—
......
.....
......
j
i
The first two strokes of t4 are dots. Its third stroke is a left-falling stroke.
They are arranged side by side above a horizontal under which is a short left-falling ]
stroke accompanied by a long dot.
S ^ Qong altogether
JL-.
—
& ytgong
#
total
Jt.
—
i
—i—
The two verticals of ^t go across the first horizontal stroke and join the lower
horizontal one.
11

Sfc&MK* o-
D
Rising Stroke
A rising stroke forcibly begins from the lower left to the upward right.
/
—X- -■
—-
. |....
—
—,—
han Han, Chinese
^Still Hanyu Chinese (spoken language)
y>
^
?>
V
?3t
7>
\^
7>
■v
—.—
i
i
1
i
i
j
|
The first and second dots of ?5C are arranged with the rising stroke on one side in
a shape of an arch.
The Derived Strokes
MM
D
Left-falling Dot
K (C) piedian ft&fi±m&'TMffli,MmfofiT®^W,K&",
A leftrfailing dot begins from the top right, then turns to the left* and bends to
the right without being brokei
1 ■■
i
!
i
—T- -
T" -
@ 3s n^ female
^CA nuren woman
-k
■dk""
-k
)
I
12

-o smR»*[±)
The left-falling dot of ^c should be completed as one stroke. Its second stroke is
left- ailing one, joining the horizontal in the middle.
J
Left Horizontal Falling
J (7) hengpie ft)^fo^m,m®ft&T^m,*®*MmM
A left horizontal falling starts from the left to the right and continues its lower
p' by t 'ng to t e left /ithout being broken.
~--r-
—r—
i
■—r-
.....
i
... 4—
l%fr ^>^ duo too much, too many
4
f
#
+
£
f,
&
i
- ~r -
i .
I
mm-mm^m* m^u$"±Tmm,m*m-^m,jfi
tt*m.
The second left horizontal falling of ^ links up with the first left-falling stroke.
The component t? is placed on its repeated form. It would be wrong if they are
arranged side by side.
1MM.MM?
Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
:- ^ A ^ y\ f f- f^
■f^ +* -fW J1+ JL+ *+ yV-f-
-f- ^ *^ 'Vf
13

3K*«i«0t* o
4s^ $:f. -^
Read the Following Sentences.
1. 4-*L;fJi#0
2. -*£:>->Nx>v?
4. 4^#Jt*£.
5. *:?■+—>Hrx,4^-+*.
i:
-h:
^
*
#
^
JL/^
JitSU
Jt+
-*
^Jk
: 4^
i#
-t*
T^
^^~
i#
WZ.
ijk
-tT
+ +
*^
-it
;V^
+^
*: *_fc». ^i# *T*
14

s**ais
Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Strokes of Chinese Characters (B)
The Combination of the Strokes
The majority of Chinese characters consist of more than two strokes. In fact
'' they are formed by several different strokes. How do they combine with one
another? Generally speaking, there are three ways to put them together. A. Two
strokes are separated as seen in the writing of ZZ and A. Namely such characters
are written with disconnected strokes. B. Strokes link up with one another as seen
in the writing of X and J^. Namely such characters are formed with joined
strokes. C. Two strokes go across one another as seen in the writing of ~r~ ^d ^C.
: Sometimes there are two or more formations in the writing of a single character,
[ e. g. Jf and ^. In modern Chinese, different characters are based on defferent
formation of strokes.
15

3fc*!JiM*R^ o
List of New Characters and Words
1. i
2. -g-
3. 4-
4^-
4. J&
J&54.
j£*
5. 2.
ia
4ss
6. it
JW
7. w
8. -fc
9. 7G
-hit
/L-S-
10. &
k>&
*,±
11. &
&$L
&t£
12. #
4b %
13. *,
14. X,
wu
bai
jln
jTnnian
hou
houbian
houtian
IT
|Tbian
gong IT
geng
geng hao
SI
qT
yuan
shi yuan
yuandan
xian
xianhou
xidnsheng
dian
didnshi
dianhud
bei
BeijTng
. - v
Jiu
■ V
J"
five
hundred
now
this year
behind, after
behind
the day after tomorrow
inside, li
inside
kilometre
even, further
better
four
seven
primary, yuan
ten yuan '
New Year
first
one after another
mister
electricity
TV
telephone
north
Beijing
nine
which
16

o 3tmn^i»(±)
15. X
16. t
m?t
17. T
T£
18. -%■
**
19. T
£T
20. -f
^^
21. *f
4W
22. 41
^Mn
23. *«
£'«
24. X
£&&
25. #
#39
#4
26. ft
ftfrl
feng
^6i
gangcai
ke
keshl
ge
gege
le
mai le
V
Zl
haizi
hao
nThao
wo
women
xTn
guanxln
mai
mai dongxi
xue
xuexl
xuesheng
V
ni
nTmen
wind
only
just now
but
however
elder brother
elder brother
(a modal particle)
bought
son
child
good
hello
I,me
we
heart
concern
to buy
to do shopping
to study
to study,the results of studies
student
you
you
■17

SteMMSS* o
The Strokes and Writing of the New Characters
The Derived Strokes
:©
-1 «l«f
Horizontal Turning
D
- (-t) hengzhe M^i'J^^^.SKWiPlT^lE
A horizontal turning begins with a horizontal stroke from left to right, then
turns down at a right angle.
■-1T-
j
j
_ j—
-- -^—--
!
■—T
... _j
r-,
—t- ■
wu five
$_■
4-
*
i
—r—
i
i
i
i
i
i
... _
—r
i
In writing 3E the vertical stroke in the middle and the vertical part of the turning
should slightly slant to the lower left.
bfli hundred
—~B yi bai one hundred
i& WW ~n WW h I r ■■+—
The first horizontal stroke of T=[ joins the second left-falling one without going
aero it.
^ ~7 jm now
^^ jlnnian this year
18

-o i5L^\x^m&\Ji}
7-7-77
i
;
i
t
i
]
!
i
i
t
±^JT Aw, ^JT A", $ E€#t*f+*f »*WS>lteT«*r..
The upper part of -^ is not a A> but a A. Its last stroke is a horizontal turning
towar lower left.
Jn
hou behind, after
Jn& houbian behind
JfjA1 houtian the day after tomorrow
^ . j^ ^ j^_. j^ _ ;_ _
The second left vertical falling of Jn touches the lower end of the first left flat
falling. Its last two strokes are the horizontal turning and the horizontal stroke.
O
IT inside, li
3.J& Itbian inside
^3. QonglT kilometre
vet rfr H7 T37 t# rir ^a 1 1
_^....^.._^-_^_^_^_._jp___^_. ^_ | ^
The vertical stroke of M touches all the horizontal strokes in the horizontal turn-
in and the final horizontal stroke.
O
geng even, further
J&ftf- geng hoo better
$L-ftSt-& it
The sixth left vertical falling of 3t connects with the first horizontal stroke and
Oes across the right-falling stroke.

«*»«a*o
ljK<fc
Vertical Turning
J
A vertical turning is written from top to bottom with a right turning or a short
curve without being broken.
■
1
J
j
j
i
j
"T
0 IZ9 SI four
i
9
no
1i
-V
W
-TliO
£f?
pfcj-
i3-7
1
!
j
Write the strokes inside the frame before enclosing it. Namely» the left falling
and vertical turning strokes of E9 should be given before the square is closed. The
two strokes inside the frame must be written apart.
i&m®
}
Vertical Upward Turning
U (u) shuwangou JW.IEtf&S,SKlq|;&5«,»Jg£l&]±««
A vertical upward turning is written from top to bottom, then turning upward
without being broken.
-b-
—
!—-
!
j
!
—j—
—
—
qi seven
■4s~
J-
-*T
—
j
j
f&-mMM,mft*i±wm. f&^£B&&Rmfa*i&%f*mto&Rfe.
20

-o St*iR5«*(±)
The horizontal stroke of -fc slightly slants to the right. Its vertical upward turn-
tg does n t turn left but right
Q yL± yuan primary, yuan
T*7C shi yuan ten yuan
TtM. yuqndan New Year
it
-jp
...jp.
jp
i
j
- .._....
-
The left-falling stroke of 7G and its vertical upward turning must be written apart
(2) J]_i xian first
5fejH Xianhou one after ahother
5fei xiansheng mister
■ ! ! - : 1 1 ; 1 r -
AT^ * 1 — rtl 1—i 1__i--i L—< '
7p yt* ?u yu sQ yu
The second horizontal stroke of _5fc joins the first left-falling stroke.
d) F-Oi dian electricity
tfett dianshi TV
&Tf_f di annua telephone
^hW^fel%I^M -1 r 4 - 1 4—K
The final vertical upward turning of % goes across its second, third and fourth
strokes.
bei north
itM Beijing Beijing
..*■■
1
4-
4-
4
4
i
i
i
—
-...„
—■
—. j ._
1—
!
21

**W*St* o
A vertical stroke should be written firstly. The left-falling stroke of the right
part uches the vetical upward turning* but oes not cross it.
Horizontal Bending with an Upward Hook
-L {-u) hengzhewangou $fc&;£fa;&^,S#ffrT,S|ti)£i^$t
The horizontal bending with an upward hook begins with a line written from left
to right before its bending at a right angle ended with a rising hook on the right.
lthough changed in various directions, the whole stroke should be complete
wit t being broken.
jj_.___.4_.-,
i i 1
i : !
® j\i iiu nine
Jf Jr 1 1 i
7p 7p t " i j
i ! | i
___ .-_.„_--..._,__..._.
The left v rt'cal falling of A oes across the horizor • 1 part of its second stroke.
©
4..
JU
4
■ V
11
i
.. _
which
i
|
i
_. 1
" r
i
—
._
—
—
1
1
The left vertical falling of JL joins the beginning of its second stroke. Be aware
of the difference b tween JL and L-
<J5 JA^ feng wind
-J^-i^-i^^L-4—1—
.4.——ttz:
22

-O JK*iRJ§*#(±)
The hook of the second stroke of H is not go widely curved as in that of the
similar stroke of ^L. Inside the character, the long dot crosses its left-falling short
stroke.
3H
D
Vertical Hook
J (J) shugou &±foTM,&,nfo£±®^mm
A vertical hook is written from top to bottom wi a left up ard hook.
]
J
j
—
... -1
fo /\ cai only
Rl'i^ gangcai just now
ii
y
i
4~
>
J
|
i
i
\ ___
—
Be aware of the difference between the left-falling stroke in >J* and the dot in tJ*.
©
Bj
ke but
PTJ^ keshi however
■ip ^F ir T T r 1 :
In writing nT the order of strokes is the horizontal stroke first, then the
component of P and finally the vertical hook.
ge elder brother
"Bf "Bf gege elder brother
i*
%
*
it
■f
^
23

3K*0tta^ o
The top and bottom of llf are both "pT"> but the final stroke of the upper one is
not vertical hook but vertical stro e.
^
*1 mm
j
Curved Hook
4 (j) wangou &±ftT^,&,ft^—'£3&&Mft£.±&^M
A curved book can be formed by a curve an tica 1 »
■■I
i
i
<D T
■f
-f-
—.—
1
f —
4
i
i
i
i-
. J .....
—4
. ...j..
—
—
—
—+_ ..
le a modal particle
5cT to le bought
;
!
i
......
—
!
i
;
The character of T is composed of a horizontal hook in connection with a curved
hook.
J Zl son
J^-f- haizi child
^■■-f^-4 +—-M--
j i
■ i
he haracter of ■? can be written by adding a horizontal stroke to T-
© XX* hao good
$>%$■ nT hao hello
#^##^#
t^&^^m^^>m^mm,Bm=mm&]^m. mm"^"
24

■o a*tR^«*(±)
When ^C on the left side of the character is used as a radical t the right end of the
stroke — is shortened and connected with the starting point of the second stroke
) . And the right si e of the character is rf.
35
&&
j
Slant Hook
V, (\) xiegou M£±fa;&T^-TiEJ£^*ft3E^,?l8^|n]±*g
A slant hook can be formed by an arch written from the top left to the lower
right and a small upward hook.
■1
!
- -j—
i
i
T
i
i
-f-
1
1
I
1
—1—
I
1
1
WO I,me
®fn women we
4
"^
'#T
ifc
4t
_^._
4k~
i
—r—
- _i_ ..
j
i
im.m&m^m-
The third vertical hook of fij connects with the first left-falling stroke. Its fourth
stroke is not a left falling but a rising stroke. The fifth slant hook on its right goes
across the second horizontal stroke without connecting with the first left-falling.
On the top right corner of the character is a dot,
~gr
Eh&
D
Lying Hook
^ m wogou &mfc$frfofiTm®>mm®m,mB®¥-M£m&
A lying ho "s s tap 1" „e a upturned arch with an upward hook.
25

3K*w«si# o
.__JV^_.t__r____.^.. _,„T-rT ... ... .... t t...
^ ^Li* Xln heart
j^jfr guanxTn concern
-#4^-
^
^
*fe
—
i" ■■
i
;
j
!
t
j
The dot on the left of j£> goes down from the higher part of the right The rest
two dots of the character slant to the right
:©
tfi «#
Horizontal Hook
)
- {-) henggou M£fo*5«lifo;&TK«,-Ki±*tt«*,$
A horizontal hook begins with a level stroke which bends at its right end in the
form of a small hook.
i
1
1
""T"""
-T-
. 4..
i
i
i
- -|-
i
i
j
j
^) 3^C m°' to buy
5?2!s]5 mai dongxi to do shopping
%
^
%
*
%
!
i
i
i
i
i
t
1
!
1
Be aware of « ' o i i in 5?. r th horizontal hook of 3? is ^t.
^
^p- xue to study
^>J xuext to study,the results of studies
^£ xuesheng student
f
#
■#■
#
^
"T
#
j
j
j ■
i
26

-o &^r:?»*(±)
The upper part is 1"t; the lower part is =jr. The first and second strokes of'*"" are
dots; the third stroke is a left falling. These three strokes are arranged from left to
right.
®
#-
#
#
nT you
$j\fTJ nTmen
#
#
#
you
#
#
i
j
!
... ..r ..
j
The left side is "f the second stroke on the right is
UM.MfDlg?
Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
4-
it
:E9 £ -b ^L -f-W -f-JL -J-^ i-yo
E?-f- i-J" -t+ ^ A.+
—"g" -^"S" ■=-"§" WW JLW tt'S"
>v-g- ^"S" —¥—f— — "&&-):&
4^ 4^. ^
^^ ^ ^ii
^"S"
.!>'
.ft*
^^ &£ &x# ^^^ &£n itJiif-
27

-»*W*M=o
)l^ JL^%£. JL^n^- JlJHt-%- JLZl
'^_£ *>:& ^*W /v<^
Read the Following Sentences.
1- foffl—£r)l^A.f?
6. #>fn^cban, class)—^-^ ^#£0 ':
7L:

S**DiR
Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Strokes of Chinese Characters (C)
The Strokes and Directions of Chinese Characters
The strokes of Chinese characters may be divided into two types in terms of
their formation; the basic strokes and compound strokes. The first type is
composed of simple dots or lines* and the second made by two or more basic strokes
without being broken in writing.
One should be aware that in writing Chinese characters each stroke must go in
a certain direction. It is important to understand this point and get oneself familiar
with strokes, for that is the first step towards the progress one makes in writing
Chi characters.
29

3fc£«*5« o
There are about 20-30 types of strokes that Chinese characters are composed
of. The following is but a brief list.
No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Shape
—
1
;
V
\
/
—f-
J
)
V.
Vi
L
Name
$|(heng)
(The horizontal stroke)
jg(shu)
(The vertical stroke)
Sfc(pie)
(The left falling)
SKn©
(The right falling)
j^(dian)
(The dot)
(The rising stroke)
$t|£l(hengg6u)
(The horizontal hook)
jg^(shugou)
(The vertical hook)
(The curved hook)
^^(xiegou)
(The slant hook)
Ef>^(wdg6u)
(The lying hook)
jg^^(shuwangou)
(The vertical upward turning)
Direction
—
i
J
N.
*
y»
-y
J
■i
\
VA
U
Example
— --S.
■f.T
*.+
•X,/^
7*\^
2UJ&
*,*
^-.nr
^.lt
$,,&
•a,i&
-t,*
30

o 1X^iR^m^(±)
No.
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
Shape
--?
L
L
f
/■
k
3
1
t
*3
h
-t
"}
Name
^tJff(hengzhe)
(The horizontal turning)
JEJf(shClzhe)
(The vertical turning to the right)
jg^(shuwan)
(The vertical turning)
jgft(shCltf)
(The vertical-rising stroke)
$S[#f(piezhe)
(The left-falling turning)
iS[^,(piedian)
(The left-falling dot)
$t$Khengpie)
(The left horizontal falling)
$t$f$(hengzhegou)
(The horizontal turning with a hook)
®Sf ^^1 (hengzhewangou)
(The horizontal bending with an upward
hook)
^c$f tfr $) (shuzhezhegou)
(The vertical and redoubled turning)
jgtfftKshuzhepie)
(The vertical turning with a left falling)
$t #f =f ( hengzhe wan)
(The horizontal turning with a curve to
the right)
* Jf Jf Sfttl (hengzhezhezhegou)
(The horizontal and redoubled turning
with a hook to the left)
Direction
-*
U
L
U
£
L
7
3
"U
**
fr
"V
3
Example
f^
S,*
ra,®
&,«
^,^
*,#
£-,$
^,-tL
A,,K
9 J*
*,#
*,«.
*,*&
31

&£!Mft? a
No.
26
27
28
Shape
■&
1
)
Name
$s#rB§(hengzheti)
(The horizontal turning with a rising
stroke)
^j$^ ^1 (hengpi e wangou)
(The horizontal with a left falling and a
curve)
^^f^r&Chengzhezhepie)
(The horizontal and redoubled turning
with a left falling)
Direction
1r
3
}
Example
T&&
H,%
zt,&
The Order of Strokes for writing Chinese Characters (B)
The Principle of the Stroke Order of Chinese Characters
The principle of the stroke order is a guiding rule for writing Chinese
characters. The right order helps learners write them fast and beautifully.
i
The following is a basic principle of the stroke order for writing Chinese char-
' acters;
m m
Principle
A horizontal stroke should be written
before a vertical one.
A left falling should be written before a
right falling.
3fc±J5T
An upper stroke should be written before
a lower one.
M 3=
Example
+
A.
-=-
Order of Strokes
- +
J A
- - 3-
32

o R^tR5«*(±)
m m
Principle
A left component should be given before
a right one.
Outer strokes should be written before
inner ones.
Inside strokes should be completed before
an enclosing stroke of a frame.
A middle stroke should be written before
strokes on both sides.
m ^
Example
ji
ffl
59
'b
m m
Order of Strokes
■ i i" if i£
j nr\ft m
\ nnf? w
J -J >b
What has been stated above is only a basic principle. Sometimes two or more
rules may be applied tot ew iting of a singl ci acter. o amp e:
The following two rules together apply to the writing of 3£: The horizontal
stroke is written before the vertical stroke and the upper stroke is completed before
the lower one
The following two rules together apply to the writing of ^p: The left stroke is
written before the right one, and the horizontal is written before the vertical.
%&£&+&£&*-.' ^ *
The following two rules together apply to the writing of -T": The left-falling
stroke is written before the right-falling one, and the upper stroke is written before
the lower one.
The following two rules together apply to the writing of *lk t The middle stroke
is written before the ones on both sides, and the upper stroke is written before the
lower one.
33

JfcMMtR* o-
it&mm
List of New Characters and Words
1. it
**t
6. f^j
AR ,
3. #
T&
&>£
4. flt
4fc#
5. a
^pE
6. &
**
7. jfc
T^^r^
**
8. ^
##
9. n
nn
io. in
ii. #
#^
12. ^
#3
13. ;#
bl
bTjiao
nin
renmfn
V
y"
keyT
yThdu
hen ,
hen hao
qu
jiaoqu
chu
chuqu
®le
kekou kete
©yue
yTnyue
di
didi
men
menkou
en
you
youde
XI
xuexf
wan
than (prep) , to compare
quite, rather
ordinary person
people
with
can
after, afterwards
very
very good
district
suburbs
to go out
to go out
happy, cheerful
Coca-Cola
" music
music
younger brother
younger brother
door
doorway, entrance
(plural suffix)
to have
some
to study
to study
ten thousand
34

O &!?tR5«*{±)
14. &
15. 4fc
4MH
16. %
17. ¥)
18. #
#&
19- ft
ft^b
20. if
iSJt-SS"
ifil
21. />
4^H
'>€
22. &
A-&
23. h£-
^■Jk
24. &
?tt
atfl-&
25. #5
^5*;
26. t&
?§■"#"
Pi#
27. J9p
*P* .
apji
ye
ta
tamen
■hu
cte
zai
zaijian
nan
nanbei
qian
yTqian
qiantian
oong
gongyuan
gongsT
me
shenme
zhuan
zhuanye
mei
meiyou
mei shenme
nai
nainai
V
yu
yuyan
kouyu
na
ndge
ndr
also
he, him
they, them
book
(a structural component)
again
goodbye
south
south and north
front
in the past
the day before yesterday
public
park
company, corporation
(a modal partical)
what
special
speciality
not, without
not have, to be without
it doesn't matter
milk
grandmother
language
language
spoken language
that
that
over there

$k%mm%.^ o-
#£
28. at
it^
iUl
&&
£*
&■*§■
&#£#
Hit
#U#
P3"^6
*
*#
narhe
zhe
zhege
zher
zheme
# %
YTrigyu
Fayu
Deyu
XTbanyayu
ffiyd
£yu
Alaboyti
so, in that way
this
this
here
in this way, like this
Proper Name
English
French
German
Spanish
Japanese
Russian
Arabic
The Strokes and Writing of the New Characters
iO
-3 £«
}
Vertical Rising
\ (U) Shutl &±fiTM,Sfi2f±8«Sl«
A vertical-rising stroke is a vertical stroke with a short rising from the bottom to
the right.

-O iRW^*#(±)
Q PLl bT than (prep}, to compare
fcfc $£ bTj i do quite, rather
r;r"i IVT"". T-i■■■; fzt—f '— —~ n -:"" " -r-
Write first —, then write J,. Be aware of the difference between fcfc and Jt.
mfn ordinary person
AK renmin people
-fc-fc-fc-Ri fc 1" ! I -
The third stroke of r^ is a vertical rising which is different from a vertical hook.
Its final stroke is a slant hook» linking up with the second horizontal stroke.
o
kA
yi
with
HTIit kekT can
UtJn yThdu after, afterwards
4^
^
&
)rA
i
i
i
~T
i
i
t
i
The ri ht component of UJ is composed of a left falling and a dot.
Of
hen very
tfl#? hen hao very good
^MMIMMMMM&
itTim , n=m'g^m~mi
The left is % , which is different from i . The first and second left fallings are
put one above another. The third vertical stroke joins the second left falling. The
right is ji,, the last two strokes of which are a short left falling followed by a right
falling.
37

afc&JiMKW o-
M
<&ffi
Vertical Turning
J
L (U) shuzhe Sfc^EfSfi|;&K^«
A vertical turning to the right begins with a vertical stroke, then turns to the
ight
.|L.
right rngl
. _|__
;
■ Q |x>. qu district
^K jiaoqu
^
g...
-ij.
^..
- ~4—
... _4._. ...
1
""""I
—■
.._..
—
]
j
i
suburbs
1
t
i
i
;
1
- j
i
—■
—
—
.....
The left-falling stroke of E goes across the long dot. Its final stroke is the
vertical turning to the right.
O
ft
chu to go out
fJb^c chuqu to go out
-jb-jb-tb-tb ■-tb + -I r
The vertical stroke in the middle of Erj goes across the upper vertical turning to
the right, and touches the lower vertical turning to the right
£
CD I e happy, cheerful
rTP bJ^ kekou kele Coca-Cola
©yue music
Ufa yTnyue music
...jj=__._j^___.^_.__.«^__._.jj^ | j , T ^ r
m=mmfr*m-mwm*ffiim. *mM&M
38

o a*iR^»*(±)
The second vertical turning to the right of jjfc connects with the first left flat
vertical falling. Its final dot is different from a right-falling stroke.
Vertical and Redoubled Turning
<, Ci)x shuzhezhegou 5fc5!EiH£&^«,&J&SlSlT5ffi.*J&li:
A vertical and redoubled turning begins with a vertical stroke and a turning to
the right, and then goes down with an upward hook to the left. It is considered one
stroke without being broken anywhere.
I
dl younger brother
younger brother
"*' ""* ^4 ^4 ^4 ^ z& I
The vertical stroke in the middle of j$ connects with the horizontal turning
ith t going ross it.
Horizontal Turning with a Hook
1 (3) hengzhegou 5fcJ&£fi:&^«IS13ETM]E,&J&te;£E3«
The writing of the horizontal turning with a hook begins with a horizontal stroke
written from the left to the right, connected with a vertical and a hook to the left.
...Tj.
I
f
.. _f_ ...
I
.._.__
'
■
-
... j ..
■ —r -
l
i
i
—-
—
39

»*»«&* o-
Q | J men door
n H menkou doorway, entrance
■ffl-H-fU-H—h 1 r- -4- H-
B«SftB¥l«>f'iB]E»Kl££.
The verticals of f] should be placed on both sides of the central line of a square
printed on the writing paper.
<D
4(1
IN
#1
men {.plural
#
4(7
4)
suffij
|
c)
I
!
i
-|_
'T
The lift side is 4 , the right side is fX
<D
yOU to have
%65 youde some
# ^" ^f- ^f ^f -^p r f 1
The first and second strokes of ~% go across one another. The lower component is
an altered H whose first stroke changes from the left falling to a vertical stroke.
®^
xf to study
^>J xuexf to study
n 3-^—h-f —-
i i i
i 1 i
The second str i e of 5 is - dot fo ">w^d by a rising stroke.
40

■o b^tr^»#(±)
0
vir-
73
^
wan ten thousand
■5f
j
... -
{
i
i
—j
i
... 4—
The left-falling stroke of 7? c nnects with t ' st and second strokes.
ye
^^fer^--
also
! ! i ! !
i 1 1 :
Of the horizontal turning with a hook of ife,, the horizontal part slightly goes up
to the right, and its vertical part slants to the lower left. Generally, its vertical
upward turning going across or connecting with other strokes, like a vertical turning
to the right, is finally written.
©
m
ta he, him
ffeff] tamen they, them
■^fe-^^^ffc-^b
The left side is -f , the right side is -til.
©
%
shu book
^% % %
The first stroke of ^f5 is not a horizontal hook but a horizontal turning. The dot
on the right of the top should be given finally.
41

g*#0tt&* o-
de (a structural component)
#### nh-€ m#■-+—r-
The left side is irj, the right side is /\}. Horizontal turning with a hook joins the
left falling.
• S
zai again
ftKL zaijian goodbye
# # #■ #"#■ #—r- + -4- -r " +
^s^g^n*^
The first horizontal stroke inside the open frame of ^ doesn't touch both side
strokes i but the lower parallel line goes across them. The vertical stroke in the
middle crosses the first horizontal stroke inside the open frame, but connects with the
lower parallel one.
r^f
nan south
^j:jL nanbei south and north
nfr-ifrmmwnfe-mT^i3&---h-
The second stroke of ]§} is not a left-falling. Its fifth stroke is a dot, and the
sixth is a left-falling short stroke. The final vertical goes across the seventh hori-
zont stro »e.
JLL
©BO
qian front
IMtlf yTqian in the past
BU^ qiantian the day before yesterday

-o smR^«*(±)
The fourth stroke of fff is not a left falling but a vertical. Its fifth stroke is a
horizontal turning with a hook, and the eighth a short vertical, the final a vertical
hook.
Left-falling Turning
t U) piezhe jfeJMA±fi|fiT^I»,«J&lqI*S*^tt.4'(lil^«f«
A left-falling turning is composed by writing the left-falling stroke with a turning
to the ig ft t e" ig broken.
vz--\ t-T-r--r-T—" T~T" T" TT 1 ' \ T~
** /A
gong public
■&H gongyuan park
^Kl gongsT company, corporation
'A
^
±WJi "A" ,*£" A-iR" A" .
The top part of & is not A or A> but A-
@ £\ me (a modal particle)
J
ft"-^ shenme what
±mmmmrmmu^"±rmm,^m^^-iE^mnB &M^"&"m
mi
The two parts of ^ is written by putting one above the other. It would be wrong if
they are arran ed side by side. Be aware of the difference between -& and fe.
43

**!JiHSm* O
35
mmm
j
Vertical Turning with a Left Falling
^ (V) shuzhepie ftM±fiT5ffi,ffifi£ft*r,l?lSi;&5as«,*8
A vertical turning with a left falling is composed by writing a vertical slanting to
the left, then a horizontal short stroke that turns to lower left, and finally a left-
falling stroke. A ne stro* it ann t e ro ei nyw re.
#
zhuan special
^ik zhuanye speciality
+ *++
The third stroke of ^ is one stroke. It would be wrong if it is written in two
parts; a vertical and a left horizontal falling.
XX
**f«
j
Horizontal Turning with a Curve
^ (^V hengzhewan ftM£fi*f^«,??8l&l~F^ffi.JRBSl6|;&
A horizontal turning with a curve to the right is composed by writing a short
horizontal that turns at a right angle with a curve to the right. The stroke cannot be broken
anywhere.
.._..* .... _a _ .|__ _j__4 _j_ _... _j_ .___. _l ...j. __.u„ _j—l—>-—1—|—L- -4-
44

-o a*iR^i**{±)
a
mei not, without
StW mei you not have, to be without
&ff*^ mei shenme it doesn't matter
&
&
*
&
*
*
—
f"
- _|—.
The left side is t > right and first half department of ■"' do not take the hook,
different from Jl.
M
*Sf#f*fSl
J
Horizontal and Rdoubled Turning with a Hook to the Left
-5 (3) hengzhezhezhegou jfc5«Hffifi3fcTSflJ,HfilS'H«,i*
A horizontal and redoubled turning with a hook to the left begins with a short
level stroke, then turns to the lower left, and repeats in the same manner, ends up
with a hook to the left. However zigzag it may be, the stroke cannot be broken
anywhere.
-%-
■ i
i_
i
i
f
_,
!
f- -
j
j
i
i
■ ~i—
- -T- -
j_ ...
© 3yJ n&i milk
W}W} nainai grandmother
M
•#J
4}
Jfr
-fy
j
j
_[
i
4.
i
i
—
j
j
mm&ffim,*ih&0 ^mmm^
The left side of #} is i£ > and the horizontal stroke connects with the left falling
without going across it. As for the right part, the left vertical falling links up with
the horizontal and redoubled turning with a hook to the left. No crossing should be
made here.

%%mm$& o-
Horizontal Turning with a Rising Stroke
■> (>) hengzheti fc^JHflt.SfilTgtf^ffiJt. + IWBf*
A horizontal turning with a rising stroke begins with a very short horizontal
stroke, then turns down and rises up to the right. The stroke should be completed
without b ing rok n.
T
-f
i
1
—
t -
:.
-----
> k(ZJ yu language
i» W yuyan language
- P i& kouyu spoken language
i%-
i&
i#
?§•
**
V
K3
&
#■
«■
t#-
—
i
1
i
i
i
The left component of i^- is i . The upper part of the right is 3l; the lower part
is P. The left vertical stroke of P should be written first, then the horizontal
turning, finally he lo e ho iz t stroke.
Horizontal with a Left Falling and a Curve
t (3} hengpiewangou 5fe^«H,#^nfraKMfi«l«f#.-«^35
As the name implies, a horizontal with a left falling and a curve begins with a
very short horizontal stroke that is followed by a left falling and a curve. The
whole stroke should be completed without being broken.
!
r
j— "
_ -
■
- 4-
r
i
-
T'
1
i
i .
46

-O 3R^i°^«*(±)
M
nd that
iffi-f- nage that
SPJL nar over there
^{J-^ name so, in that way
# # # # # # r i
The first stroke of % on the left is a horizontal turning with a hook; the fourth
stroke» the left-falling stroke goes across the two horizontal strokes. P on the right
should be written as the horizontal bending with an upward hook first which is one
stroke wit i t being broken. The last stroke is the vertical one.
Horizontal and Redoubled Turning with a Left Falling
3 (}) hengzhezhepie ^^,Sfi;£T&^,MJ5Sfa:fr£it,
A horizontal and redoubled turning with a left falling can be formed by writing a
short horizontal and redoubled turning, and ending with a left falling.
}
\__
T
^_*
zhe this
j$T-T* zhege this
j$Jl Zher here
S^ Zheme in this way, like this
i|£ j^-is.- i^t &: ii iii f- - ~r -—
47

K*!W*Sl* o-
The character j^T can be formed by writing ~$C before the component j_ is given
at its lower part of the left. The final component consists of a dot, a left horizontal
falling and a flat running stroke to the right.
iAiSM.iiifflfn^?
Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
Read the Following Words and Phrases,
it
VX
n
in
Mi
$L:
T# ^if «J& #-t «T -MF->a-
4Mf «
IMS
#*t
An
4&(ta)tf] d&(ta)4ft
'^
>Mn &^-in
i-Mn #*un &±fl
it^ tfr-f- ifr& ifn i^
#A ##Jk ##f- ^fi# ^"^it
*MHf ^^^ 4&^j^3 *Mn *Mn$£
*3U£^ ^#-^ ^-#-45 EJipg-^ &tfr^$
&&*> ## #.# &tott ^-fn^f tetttf
48

o 3t^iRS«*(±)
&: fl-& il& ^£ J
&: &.<#)a. st## at#n &#x at^^«,
tfr: Uf& 2US- -^f -t§"f
il^iii>h/w il>hxA il>h^^ i£^#£
il^^^ &>NSS il^^-Jk
Read the Following Sentences.
3. ^3L&}ftJk&$0
4. TnT.f^T,^^^0
5. 4fc4^fc# &*»#**>*& *»
8. £r'HF-*fc&$.
9. «7il££^,^fl-£^#r#?
10. A:*Mn^tf-&^&?
tfr, fain M cdou, am ^ ^ -M" 0
49

ArAr
Hi!
B*«ifi
Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Formation of Chinese Characters (A)
Pictographic Scripts
In terms of meaning single Chinese character can be divided into two types;
pictographic script and self-explanatory character.
Pictographic scripts are simple drawings representing people or objects
referred to. They are derived from pictures of natural phenomena, people, human
features, animals, plants and tools of production or instruments for daily use that
are easy to draw. In the process of the sim lification and abstraction of scripts,
50

o 3^?tR5«*(±)
however, renewed forms of the scripts are very different from what they had been
made for the first time. There is a great difference between the inscriptions on ox
bones or tortoise shells of the ancient times and the modern regular Chinese
scripts. As a matter of fact, the pictographic scripts have lost their original
features and become pure written symbols.
There is only a small number of pictographic scripts, roughly making up 5
percent of the total Chinese characters. However pictography is the basic method of
Chinese writing and the foundation of Chinese formation. It is therefore important
for learners to study them, so as to better understand the origin and structure of ■
Chinese characters.
The picto ra hie scri ts what we have learned already are as follows;
. L gong to work
IA gongren worker
The ancient written form of X is in the
shape of a tool. The character originally
means tool, and has by extension come to
mean "worker".
51

w.%mmm o-
A
ren man
IA gongren worker
The ancient written form of A is in the
sha e of a man who is standing sideways.
nU female
nuren woman
The ancient written form of ^C is in the
shape of a woman who is going down on
her knees with arms crossed her breast.
Zl son
-f^C z"nO sons and daughters
The ancient written from of J1 is like a
baby with head, both arms stretching out
and legs in his infancy.
52

-o St*tR3?tt*(±)
<b
xin heart
j^'fr guanxTn concern
The ancient written form of '(? is like a
heart.
men door
n P menkou entrance
The ancient written form of f"] is in the
shape of the two parts of a door.
you to have
St^jf me i you to have not
The ancient written form of ^f is in the
shape of a hand with a slice of meat. Thus
is symbolizes "have". The lower
component of ^f is similar to ft except is first
stroke i a verti . 1
53

3K*W«ffi^ o-
\
£$M
List of New Characters and Words
1. *L
*A
*:£
*A
2. A
£A
3. ^
^3t#
4. 3t
£i&
5. >b
*b$
*h>ts
6. ;l
JL*
•A-X
7. 3C
3^
8. #
-SJr^T
5C^r
9. u
n?£
Ao
10.4
4*
(Dda
ddren
daxue
©dai
ddifu
fQ-
zhdngfu
li
lijidoqiao
jiao
jidotong
xiao
xidoxue
xiaoxm
er
erzi
nQ'er
"fu
fCizT
rriu
munO
fumu
kou
kouyu
renkou
er
erduo
big
adult
university
doctor
man
husband
to erect
overpass, flyover
to cross
traffic
small
primary school
careful
son
son
daughter
father
father and son
mother
mother and daughter
father and mother, parents
mouth
spoken language
population
ear
ear
54

o &^tRTO*(±)
^#L
11. n
sir
12. ■£
&&
13. %
m*
14. -f-
jfc-f-lHj
15. A.
JL&
16. |J
tl&
17. -f
*&
18. *
■flfrfii
^©
-fcfc
T©
19. J*L
J*L&
20. X
X*"X
erjT
mCi
muqian
she
shetou
ya
shua ya
shou
xTshoujian
zu
zuqiu
Zl
'J"
shou
shouxian
mian
qianmian
houmian
shangmian
xiamidn
jian
jidnmidn
you
y6u***y6u
earphone
eye
at present
tongue
tongue
tooth
to brush one's teeth
hand
toilet, lavatory
foot
football
self
oneself
head
first
face
in front of
behind
upward
downward
to see
to meet
again
as well as

$k%m$m.¥ o-
£3tt$£fD«S
The Origin and Writing of the New Characters
©da big
AA ddren adult
yC-^- daxue university
©dai
j<z3z daifu doctor
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of a man standing with two hands
and feet apart,
The right falling of ^c comes out from the crossing point of the first two
strokes. The left-and right-falling strokes end at about the same level
7Z
fu man
jt^ zhangfu husband
^itW¥m-^JEmM3L MAM, ±ffi#
The ancient written form of ^z is in the
shape of a man standing with a clasp in his
hair — a symbol of manhood.

-O &*iR=f «*(±)
±ti,Ti^o m^mmmm-,^
The first horizontal stroke of ^ is shorter than the second one underneath.
The left-falling stroke goes across the first two horizontal strokes.
QAL
11 to erect
±L.3&&f lljiaoqioo overpass, flyover
The ancient written form of j^ is in the
shape of a man standing on the ground
with his two feet apart.
>
^
_£_.
_3_
9
+_
The fourth stroke of $l is a left falling, and the lower horizontal stroke is
longer than the upper one.
3C
jiao to cross
^CjM jiaotong traffic
The ancient written form of 3H is in the
shape of a man sitting crosslegged.
^t
*■
-f-
#■
^v
^
-V
'•■■£■
*
1
1
.......
i
_j_
i
57

afe*W»iX* o
m^mmMmmm&ffiMo i&
/v
[*&*B£.
Under the horizontal stroke of 3c the left falling and the dot on the right are
not connected. But the lower left-falling stroke goes across the right-falling one.
O
/h
xiao small
/J\^ xiaoxue primary school
/Nfr xiaoxTn careful
0
sS^mSz^^uIl
>&X- f~7/A
y '""" "™"- -£^£5kS^
^ ' mai^fff
/ ,
a i
The ancient written form of /h- is
composed of three dots, symbolizing grains of
s nds, or tiny things.
t i i 1 1
-^.^V^V , | i | t
The writing of /J1* begins with the vertical hook in the middle, then the left-
falling and right-falling strokes.
oJL
er son
)L-F erzi son
^CJL nfj'er daughter
The ancient written form of ) L is in the shape
of a baby, Jni is its complicated form.
58

o iX^in^«*t±)
S—,rJ^s&,^-.
—mMmwi
&MHuJl"®Km,
The two strokes of JL are separated in writing. The second stroke is a vertical
upward turning. Be aware of the difference between JL and /L.
^X». fu father
Q-F fuzT father and son
The ancient written form of $£ is in th
shape of a hand holding a stone ax,
indicating a man working with an ax in hand.
The character stands for "father" or
senior male members of a family such as
grandfather, elder or younger uncles.
£
$-
...£..
-£■
j
—T- "
—r-
■ -!—
- —j- -
■ —j- -
■ —!-- -
The first stroke of ;S£ is a left falling, its second stroke is a dot. They are not
supposed to be connected. The lower-left and right-falling strokes go across one
another. The intersection should be in the middle of the vertical line on squared
paper.
#
mu mother
"t§t^C munfj mother and daughter
5t"fi£ fumu father and mother, parents

«a^o-
The ancient written form of -HJ: is in the
shape of a woman with breasts sitting on
her knees. Obviously she is the mother of
a baby.
#
#
#■■
-^
-^
i
1
1
!
The first stroke of $£ is a vertical turning, skriting to the lower right. Its
second stroke is a horizontal turning with a hook, slanting in the same manner. Its
fourth stroke is a horizontal which is supposed to be written in the middle on
squared pap .
Q I—I kou mouth
nifj kouyu spoken language
\ Q renkou population
The ancient written form of P is like a
human open mouth.
60

-O R*iR5«#(±)
The writing of P begins with a vertical stroke, goes on with a horizontal
tu iiing, and ends up with a enclosing horizontal stroke.
(J) -EJ~ er ear
^■pk erdUO ear
^Ptfl erjT earphone
The ancient written form of J^ is like a
human ear.
IL C 1L 1L C £. i j
J . i : !
The final stroke of 3^ is a slanting horizontal to the upper right that joins the
left vertical and goes across the right vertical.
© §
mu eye
@lftf muqian at present
The ancient written form of ■ g is like a
human eye which later is written with the left
end up and the right end down. In modern
CFnese e char cter is r t used alone.
61

gfc&JMfcR* ch
^-a-a-g-^ 4 J i ,
The second stroke of EH is a horizontal turning. The two horizontal strokes
are written before the lower enclosing horizontaL Be aware of the difference
between @ and if.
©
^
she tongue
"S"3t shetou tongue
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of the tongue of a snake with the
mouth as the lower part of the charater/
The reason why the symbol of snake's
forked tongue is chosen as the written
form is possibly because of its striking
features.
~~w "isT' ~3r ~w "~«r" ■ cT" t i ^ *
The first stroke of ^ is a left flat falling. The part of P should be written in
a right size to match the foregoing part of the character.
© 3JP
ya tooth
fijlj^1 Shua ya to brush one's teeth
62

-o Sl*iRJ§«#(±)
The ancient written form of 3? is in the
shape of molars on both sides.
The final stroke of 3? comes out from the joint point of the second and third
strokes.
<D
^
shou hand
$fc^f£] xTshoujian toilet, lavatory
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
hape o ive ingers f hand.
JL JL JL JL I _ _ -J L I
The first stroke of ^ is not a horizontal but a left flat falling. Its final stroke
is not a vertical rising but a vertical hook to the left.
63

&*»«&* o
<D /£
zu foot
aELK^ zuqiu football
The ancient written form of J§L is in the shape
of a human leg with the foot at the end. In
modem Chinese generally J§L is not'used
alone, but to form polysyllabic words.
M~ >*fL >IL /fc 7fc ^L 7$L
*mmiMTf«,l£¥0 T^^Mlg^
»/v=
ItMB^c
The final stroke of jfg. is a left flat falling, linking up with the left falling and
the lower vertical strokes.
©
zi self
Fj| S zi jT oneself
The ancient form of § is like the shape of
a man's nose. Speaking of oneself, one
often point to his nose. Later it is extended
to the meaning of "self".
-fc-&-fc--S-6-i
@W^±M*P-
64

■o fc*W^«*(±)
g can be written by adding a left falling short s ke to the top of @.
\f*
O fEJ shou head
W$o. shouxian first
The ancient written form of tf is in the
shape of a human head. The character
originally meant the head of a person or an
animal* and has by extension come to
mean "leader" or "be innin ".
# w ^ w ir # # w # I
Under the horizontal stroke of Hf is g ■
<D
m
mi an face
tiT® qianmian in front of
Jjq Hi houmtan behind
_LM shangmian- upward
l^Hl xiamian downward
The ancient written form of M is in the shape
of a human face with an eye in the middle
65

mt.ix.-f- <s
-xfft ff? ^7 # ® 4? -tfj i&- ^? i--- -
—.—
The two short vertical strokes inside the square link up with the upper and
lower horizontal strokes. Between the two verticals are two parallel short
horizontal strokes.
JaL
jian to see
JaLHJ jianmidn to meet
f-HH&Hfc
The ancient written form of JtL is like a
human body with an eye on the top,
symbolizing that attention is given to
something, is the complicated form of J£L.
JjL |-JjL | A | JL1 - j-1 j- H | -H-f Ij-1tH
The left falling stroke of JSL goes up higher than the vertical upward turning
on its right.
JL
you again
X X—
you—you-- as well as
The ancient written form of X is like a
right hand stretching out for something.
66

O SWR5»*(±)
X -X 1— - -4- ■ t \- —\- 4
The second stroke of X connects the beginning of the left horizontal falling. The
joint point should be written in the middle on the squared paper.
um.mm?
Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
Jt: *A ^# JtH "**. */fr ^^
*b^^
P: Aa a^t *<Jtt rj#- X-pA
#: *.# H^ #]# ^*^J (toothbrush)
Cgao, toothpaste)
*! Tt& Js& -t* T® X& &ffi ife#
Read the Following Sentences.
2. #,4^^^(gei; for, to) JL-J-&T—>M-3&
3. ;L-f^**.,*;L-f-'K
4. 4fc;§C#^HS-£S.;*u
67

%%mmm o ■
6. # jl ^at^ #, # i e, * -«=
9. :MT#-&£#&$.£„
10. ^.^T^SUM*.
11. it;L#&-f ^(ma)?
12. B It *f* @ (Zhongguo, China) APft^ (yl, a hundred
million) ^ o

Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Complicated and Simplified Chinese Characters
mm.
"Complicated characters" and "simplified characters" are two terms in a
relative sense. If there are two or more ways to write a character, the one containing
fewer strokes is known as a simplified character, and the other is a complicated
e. For xample: ^f5 - ^f,7j ~ M etc.
ggffimtTmi&Ji^hmmftttfr 2,235 ^,i&&tf?jmttfrmim.
There have been simplified and complicated characters ever since they came
into being. Complicated characters consist of many strokes, therefore they are
difficult to he written. To reduce the difficulty the Chinese people never stop improving
the writing of them. In 1956 the Chinese Government promulgated The Scheme for
the Simplification of Chinese Characters, and in 1964 A General List of
Simplified Chinese Characters was issued. There renewed list of simplified characters
that was publicized in 1986 after some modification» contains 2,235 characters as
the standard written Chinese symbols.

&£Sip&&? O-
List of New Characters and Words
1. EI
H-f
2- R
-fl
3. 6
6*.
4. 7JC
#--f
5. *.
*.*
6. ^
*A
±*l
7. ft
Tft
8. «■
^«-
9. "Jj
O^E
10. ;S
^^
11. W
W^
12. Ji
^
n
rizi
yue
yTyue
bai
baittan
shuT
shuTping
huo
huoshan
qi
tianqi
sheng qi
V
yu
xia yu
yun
baiyun
shan
shanqu
shf
shttou
tian
tian Ei
tu
sun, day
day
month
January
white
daytime
water
level
fire
volcano
air
weather
angry
rain
to rain
cloud
white cloud
mountain
mountain area
stone
stone
farmland
in the field
earth
70

O &?iF^i£;$:(±)
iAfc
13. fc
^&
14. ;fc
*#.
15. js-
AJ.
16. Jk
ftJk
17. Jfc
**
18. >fr
^
19. A
£B
*#£
+ *A
**±
20. jjt
&£
Ji*
T£
£*.
tudi
mu
mutou
mi
dam!
dou
tudou
gua
xTgua
guo
shuTguo
zhu
zhuzi
. sheng
shengri
daxuesheng
zhongxuesheng
xiaoxuesheng
lai
chulai ■-.
shanglai J
xialai
hpulai
land
wood
timber
rice
rice
bean
potato
melon
watermelon
fruit
fruit
bamboo
bamboo
to give birth to
birthday-
university student
middle school student
primary school student
to come
to come out
to come up
to come down
later
The Origin and Writing of the New Characters
ri sun, day
B ^ rizi day
(A
71

**!PP«3t^ O
BP-g^n SRfttSt@+"Hw-fiJ^^ffi,
srsjft^f6**3
The ancient written form of R is like a
sun in the sky. Its shape became a square
as it was cut or written so. Originally it
meant "sun".figuratively it refers to
"daytime" or "day and night". In modern
Chinese it does not stand alone, but is often
used to form polysyllabic words.
m a-a a -t- f -i—i- •- t--\
The short horizontal stroke inside of the frame of 0 goes before the closing
line underneath. Be aware of the difference between H and §.
M
yue month
~~H yTyue January
nmtnmB**® 30 ^%—tn{fc,T
The ancient written form of ft is like a
crescent. Later the character stands for a
time unit of thirty days, and thus there
are twelve months in a year.
ftft ft ft - ! \—\—\ t t-\
72

-o a*iR^«*(±j
The first stroke of M is a left vertical falling. The two short horizontals can
only be completed after outer part is written.
&
bai white
6^ baitian daytime
0
The ancient written form of Q is like a
grain of rice. Because the colour of rice is
white, it is used to mean "white".
&&&& &
£j can be written by adding a left falling stroke to 0 which should be a bit
wider in size.
7jC
shuT water
TjC^ shuTping level
If • ^^ *r
V*rt. ' *- — i
/s/Q/^
jflffi 'j ^-Oj j
MfifJf
The ancient written form of ^Jc is like
running water. The zigzag lines in the centre
symbolize running water* the dots on both
si s symbo " e ops of wat waves.
73

K*!Bi*Sl* o-
jfc ^ ^ ^ j —4- ■■■■■■!■-
mm^mmmam1*
L&mrm^^M
The writing of 7jC begins with the central vertical hook. Its second stroke is a
left horizontal falling stroke that cannot he broken into two parts. The falling
strokes on both sideis should not extend further than the central vertical hook
©
'X
~4:
hUO fire
'X.]\\ hue shan volcano
s^ ■ /
(i jf *~
vr^sspfe^
f/A ^r
j-(j
4&: J
(j^t&y
The ancient written form of 'X. is like
flaming fire.
A* *t* A* A*
.A*. A^ J^ y|L ; | j |
The second stroke of 'X. is a short falling stroke. Its central component is A-
qi air
^C^\ tianqi weather
jzfe^C sheng qi angry
o~^
74

-O JX^-j^,^,
The ancient written form of ^V is in the shape
of floating clouds. The original meaning of the
character is "mist". It has by extension come
, to mean "air" in general. M, is the complicated
form of ^.
1^'
*
f
i
.. „j
1
1- --
s-m%sm,m-.BMmzmmftffl-
*~^#t&te. ^
«&,
The first stroke of ^ is a left-falling short stroke. Its second, third and fourth
strokes should be arranged in an equal distance. The second horizontal stroke is
shorter than the one on the top. The last stroke is a horizontal bending with an
upward hook.
yu rain
~FM Xia yu to rain
WIN
The ancient written form of M is in the shape
of falling raindrops. The horizontal stroke on
the top symblizes the sky» and the dots
underneath are su jposed to be raindrops.
1#
1#
m
m
m
0
i#
m
-{—
—j-—
i
75

ft%M&$L¥ o-
. The dots on both sides of M should be arranged downwards and in one
direction,
Q "Z5T yun cloud
|=Uz? baiyun white cloud
s„ -§»j
sft.
The ancient written form of -zj is floating
clouds. The two horizontal strokes symbolize
cloud layers. The curved hook indicates a
cloud cluster. U is its complicated form.
#■
^
#
^
I
—
—
—i-....
j
1
The top horizontal stroke is shorter than the one below. Underneath is the
component A.
• Ill
Shan mountain
ill E shanqu mountain area
The ancient written form of ill is like
three eaks standing side b side.
jj J^ A* — -| -\-■— -
76

-O JK¥tR5«*(±)
3fc^+fiIWS»m^6SE*f. +fil«g»E.
The stroke order of ill is a higher vertical before the vertical turning to the
tight.
(J) ^fZf shT stone
5>t shitou stone
The ancient written form of ?J is like a
stone under cliffs.
-TEr^r-Xr^-^-Y - 1
*-*M88i.*Hi*.
The first stroke of 5 is a horizontal one which connects with the left falling
without going across it.
©H
tian farmland
HM. tian Ii in the field
fc£A\^i
The ancient written form of EB is in the
shape of farmland with crisscross low
bank of: earth in between.
*¥
13J
4f
i
BJJ
j
|
]
r—
j-—
i
j
77

ftmmmx& o-
In writing 03 .the cross strokes should he given before the closing horizontal.
Its first vertical stroke and the vertical part of the second stroke should slant to the
ir ide. so as to write the character neatly and beautiful!'.
0 ±
tu earth
±j& tudl land
<*•«»<• «
;•:.;"**•
The ancient written form of i is in the
shape of a small mound.
4-4-4- ! ! ! ■ ! 1
_^ „-p ^p .__j __ j ^ _ i __.__ ^_____
stroke goes across the first horizontal, but only links up with the second one. Be a-
ware of the difference between ± and X.
©
*
mu wood
7^^: mutou timber
The ancient written form of 7fc is in the
shape of a tree with leaves on the top and
roots at the bottom. The middle stroke
symbolizes the trunk.
78

*TO3£F$F8l. _ttft&toT^_g^*|H|&sl3£.
The vertical stroke in the middle is written without a hook. The lower part of the
strokes on both sides should not go further than the vertical tro. e t
(D yjv ml rice
;Ufc dam! nee
^> ^ ^>
SftS-HR-fitlOTWfcllSL.
The ancient written form of 2jt is like
grains of rice spread about.
y]s_ 7|s_ [ 7|v f ^|s_ J^L
first stroke of ^j. is a dot Its second stroke is a left-falling short stroke.
© ______
dou bean
______ tudou potato
t&*__ mmrar^mmw^m.
The ancient written form of j_L is like a
food container with high feet presented in
a ceremony of worshipping. But now the
character stands for beans or peas.
79

**»«R* o-
■*r"r
4:
..K2...
-^4
#"
i
f~~~
—
—____.
The character M can be only written from top to bottom. Its fifth stroke is a
dot whereas the sixth stroke is a left-falling short stroke. The component P in the
middle should be oblon .
© /aV gua melon
Will Xlgua watermelon
jSt-Jk-J!Gc
The ancient written form of /R is like a
mel n growing on a plant
Unlike JR., JR. contains a vertical rising stroke and a dot in the middle.
guo fruit
shuTguo fruit
The ancient written form of ^ is like fruit
gro ing fr a tree
% ^ *-%L ■-%. %%%
80

■o a*w^»*(±)
The vertical stroke of ^ in the middle, written without a hook, is connected
with the horizontal turning.
zhu bamboo
ffi-f' zhuzi bamboo
The ancient written form of f5" is in the
shape of two hanging leaves of bamboo.
% % % # % %-■ + .+ -
izrig&ib
:>m/\;
The third stroke of f^" is a vertical stroke whereas the sixth stroke is a vertical
hook.
<D ^fe
sheng to give birth to
$L B sheng ri birthday
^Z^Oi daxuesheng university student
t^^-^ zhongxuesheng middle school student
/j\^^ xiaoxuesheng primary school student
The ancient written form of *£ is in the
shape of a seedling symbolizing the
growth of an hing.
81

3fcM«&* o-
1 J- 1 J- 1 *t 1 J- 1 jjL J ] ! ! 1 ill J... 1 ...
The fourth stroke of §i is a vertical going across the first and second
horizontals, and joining the lower horizontal.
!ai to come
dj5^ Chulai to come out
_L;5fc shanglai to come up
"F^: xialoi to come down
Jfiifc houlai later
»S*m&. £i!fft,AfJil*M»M
The ancient written form of $z is like a
wheat plant, hence the earliest form of
j|. It was believed that wheat was carried
and spread by the birds in the autumn and
that it could be harvested the next year.
Therefore 3^ also means "arrival".
-:JIL jfe. J]2—jlL JE- - jfe- JjS- —i 1 ! i—
3f^ 7fZ 7f^ TfL yf^ yf^ ^pL ; ;
The vertical stroke in the middle of 3fE goes across the top and lower horizontal
strokes.
82

-O »*S^«*(±)
KM.MUMS?
5S^I Read the Following Words
%iM£i*UiSI£l
► Phrases and Sentences
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
H : EI-?" £0
&: &X &A
#-: #--?• #Jfc
*.: XX X>U
*L: £^ ^^
^: JjJl OjT
^^K
*§: Xffi 'hfl9
^: ^ >5^
#-: *.*■ *#.
^: tfc^ Jl^L
i: 49 *£.
—ft January
^ft March
^L^| May
-M July
^L ^ September
EJ#
£^
*A
&S.
"F i^
>^;&
Tilt
A4
—1— —- ^^i November
—yL^jMf-M —
0
—^^^.^yL^^g
EI>L
6£
Jjj*
m&
^
-4
^*/J
W/J
*ft
s^R
-fn
+-
i^iB JIRJIV
"
Jj?ic *l>^ Oi*
^■^L ^^L
A4 &£ #4
February
April
June
August
October
ft December
1th October 1949
5th September 2003
83

w%mm& o
Read the Following Sentences.
1. -^Mt+-=-*/5 .
2. T^iTo
7. ;L-^#^^^,5l#^.^T0
10. 0*,^.W,i,^
11. A sft¥j £.$&&% JIB?
12. A:^W&?
84

Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Change of the Written Forms of Chinese Characters
The written forms of Chinese characters have changed continuously over the
past three thousand years. The oldest characters are the inscriptions cut on the
tortoise shells or animals1 bones and on ancient bronze objects. The seal writing came
into being before official script (about 2,000 years ago) and the regular script.
There is also the running hand in addition to the cursive writing. The regular script
has been used as a formal style of writing for more than one thousand years
whereas the running hand is the most useful style that people use every day.

&mm&n.¥ o
£?9Dli
List of New Characters and Words
1. 3
3-t ■
%&
2. 4
44$
3- 4
4 i*i
4. 4,
*,*
4-t *
5. &.
jLf§
6. Jb
*A
7. 1-
Ti#l
8. #
#f
9. ^
^^
^4J6Jt
10. Jg,
11. ife
^■^
^JL&
12. #_
*fc
ma
mashdng
malu
niu
niunai
yang
yangrou
mao
maoyT
yangmao
yu
yurou
niao
xiaoniao
fei
feijT
fei
feichang
V
yu
yumao
yumaoqiu
long
hu
laohu
mamahuhu
xiang
daxiang
horse
at once
road
cattle
milk
goat, sheep
lamb (as food)
hair
sweater, jumper
wool
fish
fish (as food)
bird
little bird
to fly
aeroplane
not
very
feather
feather
badminton
dragon
tiger
tiger
so-so (casual)
elephant
elephant
86

o a=?iR5«2M±)
13. ft
^ft
14. it
it£
15. it
T&
16. m
17. 13
19 &
18. *
®*
-t*
T*
19. /f
-^/T
20. #
*#
#A
4Mf
21. A
rdu
niurou
shT
shitang
neng
keneng
liang
huf
huilai
qu
huiqu
shangqu
xiaqu
jTn
gongjTn
©xing
bu xfng
xfngren
©hang
yinhang
zou
meat
beef
to eat
dining hall
able
possible
two
to return
to come back
to go
to go back
to go up
to go down
(a unit for weight)
kilogramme
OK, to walk on, to go
impossible
passerby
profession, line of business
bank
to go, to leave
The Origin and Writing of the New Characters
ma horse
2j_L mashang at once
Sfj$}- malu road
87

3K'*!WaiR^ o-
The ancient written form of %k is in the
shape of a horse seen from the side. It has
a Ion face with hair on the neck.
?ir jtr, it I
J% J^f J%
The writing of ^ begins with a horizontal turning,and goes on with a vertical
and redoubled turning towa 1 wer left.
*
niu cattle
4^#5 niunai milk
The ancient written form of 41 is in the
shape of the head of cattle with a pair of
big curved horns and ears (indicated by
the lower horizontal) , and a face
(indicated by the middle vertical) between them.
Jr^-A-^r-- -I fH i-A- -
The final vertical stroke goes across the two horizontals. Be aware of the
ence between 4^ and *f.
88

-o smR^ W*(±)
Xj£*
©^
yang goat, sheep
#■$1 yangrou lamb (as food)
The ancient written form of ^ is like the
head of a sheep seen from the front. Its
curved horns and the pointing lower lip
are ind'cated clearly.
4 4+4 4 4
There is an equal space between one horizontal and the others, but the middle
one is the shortest. The final vertical joins the top horiz rt I.
©35
mao hair
maoyi sweater, jumper
¥*% yangmao wool
The ancient written form of % is like the
hair on the human or animals' skin.'
13Ul_£L-ULX£ .. L _LJ -L J_U_U_I_l
The first stroke of % is a left flat falling} and its final stroke is a vertical
upward turning. Be aware of the difference between % and ^.
89

yu fish
i§$] yurou fish (as food)
The ancient written form of il is in the shape
of a fish with its head,body, scales and fin.
*
Jl
*
0-
k
&
k
J.
v~
-1—
—1—
On the top of ES is the component "". The final stroke is a long h izo tal.
. -t^j niao bird
/J\J^ xiaoniao little bird
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of a bird with its pointed bill, little
claws and feat! er.
ft,. Jjr-ft, £. .£. + |... f.4- -L.-i- 4-
m-^ Ji^m ,m-^ &mr m. ^HmjiMa M/S.
The first stroke of J^ is a left-falling short stroke, and its second is a
horizontal turning with a hook and the third stroke is a dot inside.
90

-O &^iR§«*(±)
fei to fly
Ti#l feijl aeroplane
The ancient written form of ~H is in the
shape of a flying bird in the sky.
"fe ^ "t
The first stroke of ~H is a horizontal bending with an upward hook, and its
nd str e i a ft lling. T e character is finalized by one dot.
• #
fei not
#1^" feichang very
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of a flying bird with both wings
stretching backwards. Therefore it
symbolizes "go against". The basic meaning
of the character is "mistake" or
"incorrect", and thus has by extension come to
mean "not" or "no".
# # # # # 3MMJ^-t- -j t~
fmttimg^&m^faw&f&tott. ttm&m=&2.mmntt
91

$k%wm$im o
The two vertical strokes of ^ should be placed on both sides of a central line
of the square-lined writing paper. The three short horizontals attached to both
verticals should be arranged with equal space in between. The middle one on both
sides is the shortest of all.
o
yu feather
Jpj^ yumoo feather
M&$ yumaoqiu badminton
The ancient written form of 3$ is in the
shape of t\ f thers.
#
$
$
4
m
$
-—\
—-
I
_j.
The t\\" 3J should be written in about equal size and length.
long dragon
The ancient written form of j^ is like an
animal with a widely-open mouth. In
Chinese fables the dragon is believed to be a
sacred anim 1.

ho ai^m5»*(±)
m^mm^mm^ m=m^mffi&» 3im^±$s&»
The horizontal stroke of Jfc goes across the left falling and is connected with
its third stroke. The final stroke of the character is a dot on the right top.
Im
hu tiger
^■Tift laohu tiger
SfSfiftift mamahOhu so-so (casual)
The ancient written form of ^ is in the shape
of a tiger with its head upi tail down, widely
open mouth, sharp teeth and claws as well as
sped stripes on e s ' l
-*-
ih
M
*
J/fc
-jfc
M
%
i
1
I
1
The inside component of ^ is not b but -fc.the lower component is not JL
but A.
©
x icing elephant
^#1 dQXiang elephant
k
M
(Left
—^<^N.
\d*7
*^y s
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of an elephant with a long trunk and
a clumsy body.
93

The top part of ^. is Ar. Its middle component is a flat CJ. Its sixth stroke is
a left falling that is connected with the horizontal part of the horizontal turning
stroke.
fa
rou meat
411^1 niurou beef
The ancient written form of f£j is in the
shape of a chop of meat.
ra 1*1 1*3 J*J--#3 i*J
The three-sided frame of f£| may be bigger in size. The right falling of the
piling A inside can be written as a dot. The character looks beautiful if the
connection point of the two strokes of A is placed in the centre of a small square printed
on writing paper.
Shi to eat
shftang dining hall
The ancient written form of "it is in the shape
of a human mouth near a food container.
94

-o a*iR^ilMc(±)
w
4-
k^^^^^'k
^
The top component of lit is A- Its seventh stroke is a vertical rising stroke,
and the eighth stroke is a falling short stroke. The final stroke looks like a right
falling, but in fact it is a fallin long dot.
© Rt3 neng able
^Tltls keneng possible
The ancient written form of HI is in the shape of a humpbacked bear with -
widely-open mouth, heavy claws and short tail. A bear is thought to be powerful,
therefore this character symbolizes "ability" or "talent". The first stroke of M in
the ch acter is n t r 1 f ling but a ertical.
Ab
Ab
"ftp
4fc~
Ab
fib
Ab
fitr
fib"
Ab
fib
4fc
8t>
Ab
fi&
Ab
fib
i
~"T
£.Ttt"Rn,:>
mw&o £jk%m^'t£"±.Tim^&t'-k'
The first stroke of the lower left component $ changes into a vertical. The
two piling t£ on the right are different from -fc.
95

K*«*H*=? o-
CD W
y
liang
ffl
two
1
The ancient written form of M is in the shape of two yokes in front of a horse-
drawn cart. W was the original form of $5. In ancient times a cart was often drawn
by two horses, thus equipped with two yokes.
^ ^-jfe j#7 j#j $j ^ f - -f :
There are two .As standing side by side inside M. The left-falling strokes of
both .As are connected with the to horizontal without going across it.
©
D
hut ,to return
03^ hUllai to come back
The ancient written form of HJ is in the
shape of circling water.
m^mm®* pn. S3TF mmmm a
96

o 3l^tR^»#{±)
The inner P is written before the closing horizontal is given.
® ^
qu to go
Hi huiqu to go back
_ti shangqu to go up
~Ti xidqu to go down
The ancient written form of £ consists of
two parts. The top component shows the
back of a man going away; the lower com-
, ponent indicates the opening of a
residential cave. The original meaning of this
character is "go".
* 4: -£r 4r-k— +"" ^ +
£ is composed by ± on the top and A underneath.
(^ ) | jln (a unit for weight)
^/f gongjTn kilogramme
97

w%mmum o-
The ancient written form of ff is in the shape of a stone ax with a curved
handle. An arrow is put on the ax to show its sharp blade. Now the character is use
as a measure word for weight.
The first stroke of fx is not a horizontal but a left flat falling. Its second
stroke is a left vertical falling.
A—
© fx
(D xing OK, to walk on, to go
>FfJ bu Xing impossible
ft A Xingren passerby
© hang profession, line of business
^H^T yfnhang bank
The ancient written form of ^f is like
crossroads that are convenient for
passengers to walk along. Later the characte
means "to walk on".
#
#
#
%
#
#
r
I
- —j— -
j
j
j
j
^jhmmm±~rmm,m^.m^^mr.mmmB £j&^"T"±®*n-
On the left of ^f one left falling is placed on the other. Its third stroke is a
vertical touching the lower left falling. Its right component can be written by
adding a short horizontal on the top of X.
93

-o -x*iR^as*(±)
O
£
zou to go» to leave
The upper part of jj; is in the shape of a
runner with moving arms. Its lower part
is like human feet In classical Chinese j£
means "runw, and ff means "walk".
>b ifc -^b /t: st: ^t -&
^ can be written by putting a±on the top of /£>
ag@.M8l«
Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
l
... 1
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
^:
^:
*:
4,:
@ •
A:
^ *j& #5, ^ %X %& ^4
3*
^ >>^ #4" ^ft #^ ^^
JjLjt 4^ #4 0,^ 4>4 4^
4,^ $-£, $4,J£
^.^ —&(tiao).&
'b&i 1&,
99

Z &*
fan ^4- $i>M ^-f — /r—ft ft:&
ft®
©-A- ©J]t ©£ ®@
^i*j 4^ A^
_h^ TA &£ ®^
-L* T* tb* ©* *^ 1&JM&*
—/r fttf ^tf —tf—ft —ftf
A®& A®£ AX& AX£ ATi
AT* 4fA A4ML*
Read the Following Sentences.
1. *F *#*■£* %%&&*
2. ^£.Mr.Mri*3,#-££*&„
3. iM^/MT^I**^?
4. 4fcT^#A,#^#?
5. ^^TUfei-S^^To
10. <hJ%-fcAT,ft*J&X^isj*.T0
11.. ^J*Ji->Nf Ajfe,ft#0
12. 4MHft^>MMMf7,
ft:
1*3 :
*:
A:

ti!
a**flis
Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Writing of Chinese Characters (A)
How to write Chinese characters correctly and beautifully? Here are some
important points to go by.
A horizontal stroke should be level, and a vertical stroke should be straight
up. A character may consist of several horizontals or verticals which should be
written with good spacing between one and another, and varied lengths in
composition. F r xample;
i
Jj
j£
—
;ii
■fr
2. m.®g}smft,Mmimm*$m¥,ia-.
The left-and right-falling strokes should stretch out nicely, and the ending
part of such strokes need to be placed on about the same level.
* 5C *

W%ffims& o-
The left-and right-falling strokes vary in slanting degrees. One left-falling
stroke may be flatter or straighter than the other, shorter or longer as the case may
be. For example:
-f-
-f-
t
m
+
*
A.
3L
One right-falling stroke may be flatter or slanting further than the other. For
xample:
JL
it
y^
#
3. &M^m%i&m&*sMmfc,jsii
Even dots should be written vivaciously and correlatively. For example:
*
•«
vx
&
#
it
4. -mfawmnm&ji ,&&,&•.
The hooks and rising strokes should be composed forcibly and naturally. For
example:
*
$
it
&
*
Be aware of the size of single character. Some of them are flatter, others may
be longer in style. For example;
JC
E9
R
$
102

■O &*tR3«*(±)
The central line printed on the writing paper helps a writer place characters
properly. Some of the verticals may be drawn along the central line, others can be
put near it. A left falling and a right falling often go across at a point on the central
line. For example;
t
*
A
n
&
*
3L
£
*.
Neat writing of characters can only be done when the central point is correctly
used.
i.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
A
IlK
n
nf
4
iMf4
^4
*}
*i*
*
*.*
*
4,*
ft
Tj List of New Characters and Words
II
iqi
ddo
daozi
ch§
zlxingche
huoche
shao
shaozi
yi
day!
jTn
maojTn
xidng
(Gngxiuhg'
dong
strength
physical strength
knife
knife
vehicle
bicycle
train
spoon
spoon
clothes
overcoat
towel
towel
towards, direction, to face 1
crfrectiim rr
east f[
103

gfefew«a¥ o
&&
&&
9. &
&i£
&&
10. r
xr
11. r
r*
12. i
Si
i&£
13. i
iifc.
14. &
i^^H"
15. TfC
$J^
^ .^
16. -fc
-£&
**.
17. £
£#
18. *
^*
19. #
Sfe#
20. X
dongbian
dongxi
xT
xTbidn
dongxi
chang
gongchang
guang
guanggao
wang
guowang
Wang'xiansheng
yu
yumT
gao
gao gezt
jing
Nanjing
DongjTng
(Dchang
Changcheng
©zhang
zhangda
lao
1'aoshT
dian
cidian
WU
tidowu
wen
in the east
things
west
in the west
east and west
factory
factory
broad
advertisement
king
king
Mr. Wang
jade
maize
tall
a tall person
capital
Nanjing
Tokyo
long
the Great Wall
to grow, leader
to grow up
old
teacher
standard work, typical
dictionary
dance
to dance
written language

o 3WiR3§S*(±)
Jit
21. -fr
£#
22. X
X^9
zhongwen
shen
shentT
hu
huxlang
Chinese
body
health, body
mutual
mutually
The Origin and Writing of the New Characters
ll strength
.^J^C llqi physical strength
The ancient written form of Jb is in the
shape of .a plough. Ploughing can only be
done with physical strength* therefore
this character is used to mean "strength".
The second stroke of fi goes across the first stroke.
^ J J dao knife
ZJ"P daozi knife

K*5i|i«t* o-
The ancient written form of 71 is in the
shape of a kr" e with a handle on the top.
-J3 ZJ ! — - 4-4-- t --1- 4 f - -
The second stroke is connected with the first stroke. Be aware of the difference
between 7J and ^J.
^
Che vehicle
|§J ^J^ zixingche bicycle
jJC$ huoche train
1-^-^-1
The ancient written form of ^ is io
shape of a cart with two wheels,a
and an axle.
^^^4
i=.mmm^^-mm^a ^m^m-^mm^
The second stroke of $ is a left falling turning that goes across the top
tal. Its final vertical crosses the second and third strokes.
106

-O S^lX-Sgra^MJlJ
*]
shao spoon
^J' shaozi spoon
The ancient written form of ^J is in the
shape of a ladle. The dot inside the
character indicates the food that has been
obtained.
*] *JA} [ r-4--H—h - 4
The vertical part of the horizontal turning with a hook slants to the lower left.
O Jl& yT clothes
fcfe. day! overcoat
The ancient written form of ^c is in the
shape of a jacket with a collar, cuffs and
the lower hem.
-at ^-^t % ^ &• --+-----i- -t- - - -i - --f
mwim&*3?$=m
f,*l?^J&E4

«*««&* o
The fourth stroke of ^t is not a vertical hook but a vertical rising that joins the
left-falling stroke.
O
m
jin towel
% \\i maojTn towel
The ancient written form of IJJ is in the
shape of a piece of hanging cloth or a tow-
■ el.
...rh iTl xtt „.. i ■ . . _ . . j .. J... X - —
T T T I ill
The central vertical stroke of rjl written on the central line of the small square
printed on the writing paper* goes across its second stroke.
ft
xiang towards, direction* to face
^TIf] fangxiang direction
A
j/> ft \*. v ™
//■'''■ ■ vv^
1
The ancient written form of [nj is like a
window on the wall of a house. Originally
the character symbolizes a window facing
the north, by extension it has come to
mean "direction" or "opposite".
10B

-O M=iR3|»*{±)
fci 1% m 1% 1% 1% i f 4 i 4-1
Sf5-^M$L£#%"lHl"lftE£iJ0
Hie first stroke of |frj is a left-falling short stroke. Be aware of the difference
between |b] and HI.
O sy* cton9 east
^%i*l dongbian in the esat
$%M dongxi things
^&£Jk^
X^ll/ I'M
^k( Jot ■■(
/VtfmA\
'%?;
rf5^^-^
\* 1
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of a big bag with two ends tied up.
Its original meaning is "things in the
bag", by extension the character has come
to mean "direction". 3^ is its complicated
form.
% m-^--m ^ — -i— - " t t
The third stroke of 2fc is: a vertical hook. Be aware of the difference between ^
an '$■..
XI west
Bfj£f xTbian in the west
^M dongxT east and west

**««&^ o-
The ancient written form of I5f is in the
shape of a returning bird in its net. The
homecoming of birds is believed to take
place, more often than not, at sunset.
Thus M is associated with the west where
the sun goes down daily.
^ 0J ^ ^ ^ ^
mm^m^m-mm&a ssems*,**!?*. ?iM^f^
Both the fourth and fifth strokes of M join the top horizontal. The fifth stroke is
a vertical turning without a hook. The character is flatter and different from Hf.
tf) j chang factory
Xr~ gongchang factory
The ancient written form of f~ is in the
shape of cliffs.
7f-
Jf-
... ..■__.___.
—4" -
—[--
4-
i
'•
i_
i
.j
■ i
—-
j
■ — |
110

-o iX^1R5»*(±)
The second stroke of f is a left vertical falling that links up with the horizontal
stroke.
©
r
guang broad
r""n" guanggao advertisement
The ancient written form of r~ is in the
shape of a roofed house against cliffs
without a wall.
T
* 3— \—
fr Jr Jr
T"¥±MM-&.
J** can be written by addin a dot to P on the top.
(& ~K wang king
Hi guowang king
i3fei Wang xiansheng Mr. Wang
«UME*,J0fKi*f ft ««&*&#**
The ancient written form of i£ is in the
shape of a bronze battle-axe, a symbol of
power. Thus this character implies the
superior ruler such as HJ3; (king).

&*«*&=? o
^^^i H -i- t tt~-
%=mm^±Twimffim<, *mMm&m,Tm&!mm.&a =mmmi%
wm.
The vertical stroke of j£ links up with the top and bottom horizontals. The
middle horizontal is the shortest of the three, and the one at the bottom is the longest
There is an equal spacing among the three horizontals.
i
yd jade
3£;^ yumT maize
The ancient written form of i£ is in the
shape of jade pieces joined together.
:£- i-ir^ir- -+- h - -1 -h- f
3i can be composed by adding a dot to the lower right part of 3i.
| |
(J) JrJ gao tall
iB-r^Mf" gao gezi a tall person
f*"
[£-. ^c^
Kfc,-„ -"-"_.
feS*1 "s
g^r'-
tsssfi'jflKV^'
The ancient written form of ^ is in the shape
of a tall building with a roof on the top* a gate
tower In the middle and a gate at the base.
112

-o Sl*1R«*(±)
Hr
-3r
T*J
*
•
iff
4r
■m
-&■
m
*
*
i*r
--4- -
The top part of jftf is -*-, its middle part is a flat O. In writing the lower part the
three-sided wide component should be completed before n is given.
© SVs j'ng capital
Nanjing Nanjing
^%M Dongjing Tokyo
The ancient written form of j^ is in the
shape of a palace built on a higher place
with a pinnacle, gate tower and wall.
Because a capital and a sovereign ruler's
palace were highly built, the character has by
extension come to mean "capital".
#
*
11.
1$
#
*-*
* #
The upper part of J& is similar to that of ^, and its lower part is /h..
(0 [X ©chang long
-^M Changcheng the Great Wall
©Zhang to grow, leader
"ix^C zhangda to grow up

3KSJIWSR* o
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of a person with long hair.
jk.ik.ik.ik.jIJ! i !
~Jp--jf£ >> p ]
The third stroke of ^ is not a vertical hook, but a vertical rising stroke.
lao old
^§0 faoshl teacher
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of an old hunchbacked man with
thin hair and a walking stick.
_i£- J2- JU- Jtt- _Jb£- Jbi- !
The lefl^falling stroke of % goes across the horizontal. Its left-falling short
stroke is connected with the final vertical upward turning. The lower part is not -fc
but L.
114

o a*iR^«*(±j
® Hr
dian standard work, typical
t^JI- Cldian dictionary
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of two hands with a book in
between. Hence this character implies
"important documents'' or "books".
# # # # -# ^ j& # - -i- i -i- - -I
The two verticals of ^ go across its second stroke, and link up with the sixth
horizontal stroke. Its final stroke is not a right falling but a dot.
©
wu dance
W$$ tiOOWU to dance
*fm?#m^$t;t
MMW?<
The ancient written form of $f is in the
shape of a dancer with hairy ornament in
both rrnds.
ji¥$>mrM±^m^» "mn¥mmmg,mmzm^nmm<
115

w%mm9& o-
In the upper part of $| are four verticals. With so many strokes, this character
should be composed compactly.
X
wen written language
■^jt zhongwen Chinese
The ancient written form of Jt is in the
shape of a man with tattoos on his chest or
back.
■3t
■*■
*
-3£
|
i
—-i—■
-—1—
--J--
i
The third and fourth strokes of 3C go across one another, and are conneeted with
the horizontal.
O
shen body
Mifc shentT health, body
The ancient written form of jf is in the
shape of a pregnant woman.
f I ^6^^-^H^rt ft- H-l"l
^mm^mBmffi&° ^mm^m^mm^
116

O ft^R5«*(±)
The sixth stroke of Jl joins its third stroke that is crossed by the final stroke.
hu mutual
j£$i| huxiang mutually
-tittup-wx.Mi&m?m&-m&}
The ancient written form of 5 is in the
shape of an instrument with which two
rop s are twist toge er.
._i:___i: ± _i i i L L .1.1
J21 JjL. S- J2- [ ! J [ t
life.
The second stroke of Jt is a left-falling turning. The vertical part of the
horizontal turning slants to the lower left. The lower horizontal is longer than the top
one.
&®ii,iifflS]«
Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
n
*^ i}\ %J3
k.7) >Yn 77 n :7f77 —4&(ba)77
'J^ %ft%* *^ 44- +4 —^Ciiong)^
4i^ ^.^ _t^ J55.^L i$$~

«*!lif#ft* o
F
t: ** -fifr 4^ —#'-&')'
ft: i£j& ftft fti^g ftjb iSj_t ftT ftl-T
&,£ Xft -i-i^. ■— ft
$: ** && skJ&.ii** ft££ *n &fi
... -™ r- " "
ft: ftjb 'ft rig ftX ft/k- »^ft ftH ft^7
— /-ft ~"7~ ^
■ A: itr^r j^^ iftil* ■ i^t ' £$
it
i^ i^ *i ^i
&# ^^ r^ -f-fc -w
*/-- £-^ 3&*;l ^^-a ^fy
t^L EI 31 ^31 &il &it ftsjt^s:
Read the Following Sentences.
3. ^f^t^^if^^^lU^f^-lW^,
4. S&Hfctt*;M»& *"*%?- ■
-_5. A:^b^C^#^C2en)^A? -
' b :#ftir £-ir^,^s>h*pJt**^#«$n.'"
6. i^i^M^^-?,^—J*L/V£«
7. A^. &*!**#«
8. &*«,4Mr**?
io. ft^^r^r^o
11. ^^^"Mf^
118

12. &tf s^AA^A.
13. &fcX^ft®&t-£rl ,TJfe&ft*.W;fc.,
14. &*£*.*!*,at#S.**g*.
15. ^^^f.M^fc
-o B^iR^WU)
119

Ai!
S**QiR
Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Formation of Chinese Characters (B)
Self-explanatory Characters
Self-explanatory characters are single characters whose abstract meanings
expressed by the combination of their strokes. They may be classified into two types;
One type of them is purely symbolic, for example;
■
Another type is of pictographic scripts with an explanatory symbol. For
example, ^ (roots of a tree) is composed by adding a symbolic "—" to the lower end of
;fc. Similarly J] with a symbolic dot becomes if].
120

-o fc*iR5«*{±)
Self-explanatory characters constitute only a small number of the total Chinese
characters.
-explanatory characters what we have learned already are as follows s
±
shang up
_t^F shangwu morning
In ancient times a short horizontal was
placed on a long horizontal to indicate
"top".
Xia down
Formerly a long horizontal above a
short parallel line indicated "down".

Q y\i tian day
^~Jt jlntian today
^-^AMLrdK£0
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
formation of ~fc with a horizontal on the
top,meaning that "sky is overhead".
The Shape, Number and Position of Chinese Characters
One should pay attention to the shape, number and position of the strokes
when writing a character. The shape of the stroke cannot be changed anyway. For
example, if the top horizontal of jfc is written as a left falling, the character
becomes ^. This also applies to the combination of strokes. The two strokes of A
are connected with one another. Suppose that they are separated, the character is
A- Similarly the left falling of ^ does not go across the top horizontal, otherwise
the character is ^. It is also important for one to keep the number of strokes in
mind. ^C can be written as ^ by adding a horizontal on the top, or as A by taking
away the top horizontal. The position of each stroke is fixed. One cannot move the
dot of >fc from under the connected strokes to its right top, or the character
changes into ^t.
122

— o a^ip.^»*i±)
List of New Characters and Words
1.T
-f-#
2. A
AU
3. 2f-
*m
*■#
K4-
4. #
#*
5. M*
&A
6. ^
4#
7. rL
16
8. e,
&&
9. yf
Jfcvsr
&>5r
jfcvir
&2T
10. #
wfrM
11. 10
10 #
gan
gan huo
ru
rukou
kai
kai men
kai xue
kai che
jing
jTngshuT
cheng
chengren
hud
huozhe
■ V
Jl
Zljl
V
ytjlng
fang
beifang-
nanfang ■■
dongfang
xTfang
bi
blxu
jiu- ■
jiu shu
to do
to work
to enter
entrance
to open
to open the door
to return to school (after a
holiday)
to drive a car
well
well water
to become
adult
perhaps, or
or
self
oneself
already
already
direction
the north
the south
the east
the west
must
must
old
used book

9fc£0&3^ o
12. JE
iE£
13. jh
If-jt
14. £
15. Jll
E9J1)
16. fl
r«
17. ^
*tf
3f#
18. £
^JS
19. #
Afl-A
#7
20. &
$ms£
21. &
&&
&Jk
22. t
ta
t#
»f»'«
23. >^
**
i^.^
zheng
zhengzai
zhT
tingzhT
mai
chuan
Sichuan
zhou
Guangzhou
yong
buyong
youyong
jiao
sanjiao
wei
wei shenme
weile
ban
bdngongshi
nong
nongmin
nongye
zhong
Zhongguo
zhongxue
zhongxTn
ben
benzi
keben
just
to be doing something
to stop
to stop
to sell
river
Sichuan Province
islet
Guangzhou
to use
needn't
useful
angle, horn, corner
triangle
for
why
for
to do
office
farming
peasant
agriculture, farming
centre, middle
China
middle (high) school
centre
originaKa measure word for book)
notebook
textbook
124

■o a*iR^**(±)
24.
25.
26.
27.
*
$*-
%
*u
JL
*.fH
JUL
jfa.
ifejfc.
mo
zhoumo
j
rpion
zhaopian
tai
taiyang
tditai
xie
chu xie
end
weekend
slice (a measure word)
picture, photograph
too
sun
Mrs. , madame, wife
blood
to bleed
3= 5:6531 S54SS
The Strokes and Writing of the New Characters
Compare the Following Groups of Form-like Words
(-)x-±-=l1-^
Q j gan to do
T^^S gon huo ■ to work
XIX i J_Li U.i L_.L_l_VI- -—-L- - J_
The vertical stroke connects with the top horizontal stroke and crosses the lower
horizontal one. Be aware of the difference between ^P and iJ.
(-)A-A-A
A
ru to enter
An rukou entrance

&=&!«&? o-
The right-falling stroke of A joins its left-falling one. Be aware of the difference
between A and A1A0
kai to open
JfH kai men to open the door
Jf^ kai xue to return to school (after a holiday)
JF^£ kai Che to drive a car
JfffJf
The third stroke of ?f is the left-falling one which goes down before turning
left. The fourth stroke of the character is a vertical one on the right. Both strokes
join the to horizontal stroke and cross the lower horizontal one.
O
#
jTng well
^?JC jTngshuT well water
The ancient written from of $ is in the
hape of the opening of a well with
surrounding stone or wooden work for
safety.
#■■■#■#-#
t&^m&m^m mm^ mmmm^ M^rjr w km ,
126

-o a*te^«*t±)
The third and fourth strokes of ^ go across the two horizontals. Be aware of
the difference between # and Jf.
/JXi Cheng to become
$£A chengren adult
m -$s ^ & m $k i (" i i + -+
The beginning of the horizontal stroke of ]5&i links up with its left vertical
falling. The dot on the top right is finally written.
O
hud perhaps, or
^^ hudzhe or
ski M< ilt ■ $k M, &r M< M« t I i 1 -
Be pware o he differerce between M rnd |£.
§ B zTjT oneself
O \^_j J^j I -■-J - --r- j t -j- -; j-~
^MSfc^TSIW^CB"^ B ") T .
The horizontal turning of B joins the right end of the horizontal stroke. Its
vertical upward turning links up with the left end of the horizontal without going
- ros it, othen ' e it wo d be a diffe ent character S or E.

%%mm& o-
: I i yT already
i
^
b;
&
g> yTjTng
■-—-f--
already
|
- -]—
__j_
... „„ ..
-- --i—-
!_._.
■ -| -
The final stroke vertical upward turning is connected with horizontal stroke and
exceeds it, but is separated from the first stroke horizontal turning. Pay attention
to the difference with S. - .
fang direction
dfc^f be i fang the north
llf^f nanfang the south
lf.~}5 dongfong the east
15l£f xlfang the west
"%
3r
^
if
i
t
i
j
-f-
i
t
j
The character of ~$? can be written by putting a dot on the top of 7f.
(-t)'l>-!&
>&
bl must
ij&M bixu must
■4*
4-
ijt-
$?
■&■
-i—-
-----
......
1
- -4-" -
i
---I
The character i& is composed of it and a left-falling stroke written before the fi-
n 1 dot is given.
(A)M-IB
©In jiu ou
IB^fS jiu shu used book
128

o m=ir_
0 means "day" or "time". 0 plus a vertical on the left indicates "old days" or
"past'time".
m-m
m
m
'H"*£2tfnHB.ft*i3".r
IB can be written by adding a vertical on the left of 0. Be aware of the
difference between IB and .B..
(A)JE-±
IE zheng just
lE^E zhengzai to be doing something
I ] -r —i 1 1 1 1 ■ r 1 1 — l ■
jjL- it i iE j£ -4- --4—i 4- —!- --4-- -- [—
The central vertical stroke connects with the horizontal strokes both at the top
and bottom. The middle short horizontal stroke on the right connects with the
central vertical stroke, and the lower vertical stroke on the left that is slightly higher
than the right short stroke uch s the o izon - stro e at e bottom.
• it
zhT to stop
r?ih tingzhT to stop
The ancient written form of jt is in the
shape of a human foot with only three
toes. Obviously the character is not picto-
graphic but a written symbol.

«#1W«« O
jh jk-jfer- iL 4 I 4 4 !■- -- -4 !
The left vertical stroke is higher than the short horizontal stroke on the right >
but shorter than the vertical stroke in the middle. Be aware of the difference
between it and IE.
{f) 3^c m& to seU
d& S^ ^P -|p SET 3&
M can be written by crowning the character of ^ with a -f"> which the vertical
part may be made shorter.
(+- ))\\-m
(§ / ' j chuan river
P9jl| Sichuon Sichuan Province
sttu^-^m^m
The ancient written form of )\\ is in the
shape of a zigzag river.
)W JiBH
B-€Ji^«^"€]5^M^^Kl!gS^fH€^raBE^ffi^c
130

-o 3l*iR^«*(±>
The first stroke of J)| is a left vertical falling. Its second stroke is a shorter
vertical with a longer one on the right. The spacing between one stroke and another is
about the same.
(0
JM*
zhou islet
/"^H Guangzhou Guangzhou
The ancient written form of j$\ is like a
small piece of land in the river. The
original meaning of the character is "islet". It
has come to mean a prefecture.
#HJtt- M #1 Jiift
The character can be written from left to right with a dot attached to the middle
of each strokes of Jl|.
t+-)ffl-a
©if
yong to use
^ffl buyong needn't
^ffl youyong useful
m. m _m « m _f....f _ f_ ; ^ ._■, f
The character ffi is composed by writing the outer strokes before its inner ones.
The final vertical stroke goes across two horizontal strokes.

ftmrnmrsL* o-
O
jiao angle, horn, corner
H^| sanjiQO triangle
The ancient written form of % is in the
shape of a horn cut off an animal. Its
texture is clear and obvious.
m m m m m Hr1fr-\—\—\—\—\
There are two connected strokes on the top of ffl.
© Ji w®' f°r
>^/ft*^. wei shenme why
Ji}~T weile for
ih -m t£t -xr --f t I— ■ -f- ■ -t i-
The writing of ^ begins with a dot on the top left, and ends with another dot
inside the horizontal turning with a hook. As a rule, the dot on the top or top left
of a character is always written first, and a dot on the below and on the top right,
or inside is always finally written.
© #
^ ban to do
ifr'&j^ bangongshi office
flr^lr-firjfr ! -! -!--—r+-+ h—h
132

■O 3l*1R5W*(±)
The stroke ~fo in the middle is written first, thenJ on the left, and finally * on
the right.
(+H)*-5R
o
n
nong farming
$t|jq nongmfn peasant
^feik nongye agriculture, farming
jfc-%L %-%-%■ qtH—L- -j |- f--+-
The left-falling long stroke of ijfe goes across the horizontal hook. Be aware of
the difference between ijfe and ^E.
»«
Self-explanatory Characters
J
*
zhong centre, middle
41 @ Zhongguo China
tf1^ zhongxue middle (high) school
^'fr zhongxTn centre
The ancient written form of ff3 is in the shape
of a flagpole in the centre of a circle.
-•t"-T^T -! h+-h fJ-f-^+

at*«ittisi* o-
The P of 41 is flat The vertical stroke should be placed on the middle vertical
of a square printed on the writing paper.
7^
ben original, (a measure word for book)
^-p benzi notebook
llf^ keben textbook
The ancient written form of ^ is in the
shape of ^ with a short horizontal going
across the lower end of the vertical. Thus
it meant "roots of a tree".
/^ii i ^ ™! T" -i ■■- -1- H--
^ can be composed by adding a short horizontal to the lower end of the vertical
without a hook. ^
mo end
M^- zhoumo weekend
The ancient written form of 5^ is in the
shape of 7fc with a longer horizontal going
across the top end of the vertical Thus it
meant "tip of a tree".
M'
f
i
134

-o smR^T«{±)
^L ^ fc ^ i%. t ~r { ~t- I T
The top horizontal of ^ is longer than the one under it. The lower end of the
vertical has no hook.
ft
pi an slice (a measure word)
1${$t' zhaopian picture, photograph
The ancient written form of ft is in the
shape of half ;fct meaning a big piece
chopped from the wood.
-M—Jrr-J^—in V~ -j- L —I t~ h f
\^M^nmm-m
:,*mmm$t,^
The second stroke links up with the third stroke. The third and fourth strokes
are connected with the first stroke. The final stroke is a horizontal turning without
being br .en.
tai too
;fci$H taiyang sun
JkJ^ tai tai Mrs. , rnadame. wife

3fc&lWit&^ o
&I?;fcKi*1il,iftJMB&:^:&,*r.
>fc is ;fc with an extra dot underneath»
meaning "over" or "extreme".
jfc can be written by adding a dot to the lower part of ;fe.
O ll'll.
xie blood
iljjfiL ChO xie to bleed
JfiLJ5fe£!|»L'K
The ancient written form of jfil is in the shape
of a kitchen utensil (Jffl.) with a dot in it
Formerly the blood of a sacrificial animal was
let into a container for the religious service
_m jfo jfe jfa. jfe jfc j i I !—I t--
Ifil. can be written by adding a left short falling to the top left of JUL
136

o 3mR:f »*(±)
Read the Following Words * Phrases and Sentences
-f-i—A &-& H-10 ))]-■$ #.—;*-
A~A-A ^-55r oh-j£ # —£ ^-^
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
As *.* XK #^
A; An jbA All A#
*N ^4 #fl ## tf-tf #cr tfx tf£
^& *f-* #<« tfjk fl-nAdj
3T: :*fr *>&■ ^^ &2r &# &4b>3r
ffl: ^^ *#*. ^#%t§- mi) m^ t%
%L: %L& %L& jfcW %L}L fc-ft
t^ t-^4? t^ +'"
*. -^ — ;M3* *-f ifc*. ^A *£
*! J9#- *#- ** ft* #■-*
jfc: i:*T *.'MV *.*7 *# ££ *;*■
;UfT
137

I
y&mwmu¥ o
Read the Following Sentences. "V-
1. 4Mf Median) ^^fH . #&£-£•&& J8 c
3. ^T^T^PStfe^To
4. 4&XM4rT f&tl&4r*&o
9. 4MH it£ _H£, # T « £it JL%■ (deng, to wait) — T, &
10. sp,Ml#*JILTo
11. &&*TraJi|,**T/-rt.J£T&&JfJlMo
12. ^£tttt*&fe£T,tefl**S*TteJft:MS.
13. 3lit^^^^-^&^^"AT,#Ml5"^#>h^0
14. 'K^f,#^fifeiiT0
15. #£Ji^i^&? ^tf-^T^?
16. A;#^^^^( loi, to come)
138

§*fc]iR
Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Radicals of Chinese Characters (A)
l tJ4 ^n terms °^ tne traditional Chinese philology the left side of a character is
! known as -fft, and the right side of a character is known as ^. Now we use "tft^
I (radical) to mean the side components (left, right, upper, lower, inside and
outside) of all characters. For example, the radicals of Jl are H and4^. that of lift are
f=| and *$. Most radicals may function as characters by themselves such as 0 , CI,
I
gandS. \ £i^
»iSIi
List of New Characters and Words
1. ^
#*&
2. *£
ma
hao ma
(Dba T'
1 (a modal particle)
OK?
(a modal particle)

**W«K* o
A.*&
J@I>e,
3. VL
faVL
4. #p
^p^v
<#p^^
$]Ul
5. *£
*rt
6. *%
^?K
7. *
8. 4
9*0 4
9. ^
^-m
10. ^
ii. -&
#*
12. <?f
*J-5f
prt
9fA
13. ^
"■H&
14. -§-
*<fl-hf-
15. ^£-
zou ba
©ba
jiuba
ne
ta ne
V
na
nage
na guo ren
nar
chT
haochl
he
he shut
ka
fei
kafei
pi
pijiu
ke
sou
kesou
tTng
haotfng
tTngjian
tfngli
jido
jiaozuo
hdo
Jilj yue shi hao
gao
Let's go.
bar
bar
(a modal particle)
How about him?
which
which, which one
Where are you coming from?
where
to eat
delicious
to drink
to drink water
coffee
beer
beer
to cough
to cough
to cough
to listen
pleasing to the ear
to hear
listenning comprehension
to call
be called
number, date
the tenth of September
to tell

o jR¥iR«*(±)
&#
16. •§
<£*fc
17. -f
*-t
18. &
Bt-h
19. 4
4*
20. &
«.#>
21. b^
9! 6
22. b£
«£*.
23. £
Mi
24. $
^^
25. A
AW
TA
26. -|-
&*
27. *
*&
#*
28. BH
BfLjS
29. if
gaosu
chang
chang ge
zao
zaoshang
wan
wanshang
chun
chOntian
nuan
nuanhuo
ming
mingbai
zuo
zuotian
xlng
xTngqT
yi
rongyi
shi
shi de
keshi
yTn
fayln
kan
kanjian
haokan
yan
yanlei
jing
to tell
to sing
to sing a song
early, morning
early morning
late, evening
evening
spring
spring
warm
warm
bright, light, clear
understand, clear
yesterday
yesterday
star
week
easy
easy
be, correct
yes, right
but
sound
pronunciation
to look at
to see
good looking,beautiful
eye
tears
eye

**»i«R* O
flfcl*
30. &
Bfc£
yanjing
shui
shuijiao
eye
to sleep
to sleep
The Structures and Writing of the New Characters
t-7 P^5l kou zi pang The Radical of □
mM¥"n"meoM* «pwfH»gW^£^nift££3&ft££*. "p;
The pictographic script P Csee page 60) as a lateral radical is relevant to a
mouth or its function. It often appears as the left side of a character, but may also
be the upper or lower component of a cfcrra t r.
m,
1
2
ma (a modal particle)
Ifi-fQ hao ma OK?
®P ©^
©PE
1
2
%
1 2
©ba (a modal particle)
T^PE z6u ba Let's go.
©ba bar
WE jiuba bar
(£P ©B(ba)
ne (a modal particle)
ftfe9J& ta ne How about him?
(DP ©SCn I)
—T -ft 3I pj
" * r J* fo
142

-o -5?«?«*(J:)
o
1
2
3
Ife
1
2
o
nj
1
2
3
na which
nage which, which one ^ ■
IA na guo ren Where are you coming from?
nar where
chT to eat
^ftfe haochl delicious
(DP ©£(qT)
he to drink
B^^JC he shuT to drink water
(DP ©0 ®£)
ka
/
*3
*J
*J
iSJ
1
2
3
• If
1
2
. n$
1
2
(DP ©+®jfjn(jia)
fei
DM kafei coffee
(DP ©#
pi beer
Vfy-M pijiu beer
(DP ©#(bei)
it
Jtv
f
<
fr
fr
&
&
M.
■*
m
(J) H^; ke to cough
1
2
(DP ©JC(hai)
—
•£-
y
T?
3T
143

5K*!B«lcS* o-
©
1
2
3
©PJf
1
2
nil
1 2
®
i
2
®
1
2
i=r
nPi
1
2
3
r rv s * ± £
sou to cough
1^^ kesou to cough
®n (2)^ (shu)
ting to listen
$J-l?Ff haotTng pleasing to the ear
BffJSL tmgjian to hear
PffJ^J tTngll listenning comprehension
(DP ®/f
jiao to call
Elljjijjlf jiaozuo he called
cdr ©m! * 1 ^
hao number, date
%M "h"^" jiu yue Shi hao the tenth of September
(DP ©^
gdo to tell
^nVf gaosu to tell
(DJ
/ a- *¥ A-
©P
chang to sing
tHisR chang ge to sing a song
©R ©+®^ (chang)
\
r7
F7
er
3
^7
E7
144

-O iWiR5**<±)
9 B^ rizipang The Radical of 0
The pictographic script 0 (see page 72)as a lateral radical is generally relevant
to the sun, time, rays or light. It appears on the left of a character, but sometimes
may be on the top or bottom of a character.
©#*
1
2
zao early, morning
-^■_t zaoshang early morning
(DB ©+
wan late, evening
B% h wanshang evening
(DB (D&Cmian)
chun spring
^jf^C chOntian spring
J
Jr
<*
fr
&
$>
$L
- ~ * r A
|0
1
2
o
m
1 2
nuan warm
|@!fn nuanhuo warm
(DB ©g(yuan)
ming bright, light, clear
§§[=1 mfngbai understand, clear
(db ®n
*? ^ ^ -^ -^ ^ #
zuo yesterday
$E3Z ZUOtian yesterday
1 in.
.. >■

&%$$&&¥ a-
1
2
®B ®^(zha)
®
xing star
M3$ xTngqT week
0)0 ©£
©
1
2
1
2
1
2
Eg.
0
yi easy
^rlo rongyi easy
®0 ©^J(wu)
Shi be, correct
iHn^J shi de yes, right
pf;H keshi but
' *i h m
—
-r
-F
7F
JC
0)0 ®/E
yTn sound
^t^ fayln pronunciation
0X& ©0
B g^ muzipang The Radical of g
The pictographic script @ (see page 61 ) as a lateral radical is related to eyes
or vision. It may be used as a left component of a character, but occasionally as a
lower component of it.
kan to look at
^fJE kanjian to see

o &;?raiS;*:(±)
©
1
2
© ffi"
1
2
^)
1 2
xFW haokan good looking, beautiful
©g
yan eye
BRtJEl yanlei tears
®S ©g.(gen)
jTng eye
HEBf yanjing eye
®B ©W(qTng)l
shui to sleep
$1^ shuijiao to sleep
CDS CDa(chui)
"7
)
leep
-*
)
=7
s
^^
■3
*
f
r
^>
p
f-
s.
*
"ft ^T
.> r -
^r #- -$- #^ #•
a»a,SfflfD«
Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
n%. %-<% -^«s, ^"J, i^p3 T&p3 th-feT1^
"S: ^& 4t*& ifPS ^"C* SB'S. 45 pC 9fr#"£
!&i &% #-9£ 4$^ &&&* &lft:MU&
^p: «SpjL ^P^. <«p^ ^^45 ^P^/v "SBp^-i-

%i%mms& o
<$: ^?K ^^SS »$*"# "^4"^
'Jf: "3f& ^p^ ^ "Jf^JSL ^93 6 "5f%.^
8fc_t, 4^& ^Bi #& flfc-f- £i&T
fl* ^^ #6 $8 tyft
** fc-t- iL-g- a-f-
*JL': *.£■*■ ±£ #■£ #£
*
«&
fl
*
l
Read the Following Sentences.
1.
tr-r
■:; 2.
3.
4.
5.
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
:4^MW
z**lM.M£-,4*XJLM*Lo
z^^JLRJL^I > " ^
i^^-SJS+^-fV * _
^^"^^^^(mingzi)?
s^^A^ito
:M8M^?
:^,^HM.
:T^*^L?
:^*i^-(fu)^^-^^-0
:&•&■£. #<%?
lAJtJ'T o
:^^4^?
: ^,itit(xiexie). &«$ *Mk
:**JL'hiT"%?
:4fcjE£&#;*o
148

o a^fc^wu)
6. AjnM.Scttft/M^'fc^?
B iftf.
A:^£<W&?
140

MfcDiR
Rudiments of Chinese Characters
&¥&}J£&M)k~m)
The Structural Levels of Chinese Characters
There are three structural levels at which a Chinese character is written;
strokes, components and characters. Take Jis as an example, its dot and horizontal
stroke can be used to form the component of -J-; its strokes of | ~|— can be used
to form P j of ) J ^ to form /j\ The three components can be further used to
compose the character of Js. A component is bigger than a stroke, but smaller than
a character, thus it is the basic structural unit of characters.
The Writing of Chinese Characters (B)
The Modification of the Horizontal Strokes

O SI*tR^t»*(±)
When a character is used as a component of another character, one of its
strokes may be modified so as to make another character composed by it look
compact, well-balanced, cohesive, centripetal and steady. Here we are going to explain
how a horizontal becomes a rising part as a final stroke of the left or lower left
component. For example:
X
±
It
At
-*jt
*5
it
^r —-3
fe —*t
JE —-E
m.
±*mm
List of New Characters and Words
1. 25
jt*5
2. #
&^
3. ^
*£
4. £
££
5. *fe, v
$L7?
ifc-h
i&T
qiao
zhengqiao
gong
chenggong
zuo
qTng zuo
zai
zai jia
di
drfang
dishang
dixid
coincidental
to happen to
effort
to succeed
to sit
Sit down please!
at, on
at home
ground
place
on the ground
underground

ft%mm%.¥ o
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
Jbt
JfeJbfc.
*&
/-^
'XtyJk
^%-m
&
-&;l
*p
&
«
^s
^
it
jhcjl
*
JMt
j&j^
^SL
$L£
£$L
#
^L#f
#
#M
&
^^
4ft
ft
*t&
zhT
dlzhT
chang
guangchang
feijTchang
tingchechang
kuai
yTkuair
huai
cheng
jin cheng
cheng El
chengshi
wan
haowanr
qiu
zuqiu
diqiu
xian
xianzai
chuxian
wu
ITwu
te
tebie
qTng
nianqTng
liang
jiao
bTjiao
address
address
open field
square
airport
parking area
piece
together
bad
town
to go into town
in a city
town, city
to play
enjoyable
ball
football
the earth, the globe
now, to appear
now
to appear,to emerge
thing
gift, present
special
special
light
young
(a measure word)
to compare
to compare
,-
152

o 3l^iR^**|±J
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
J*
ft*#
^£i&
*
5^
#£
±
)L±
m
*rffl
#
#jk.
¥p
«*jul
a
#^
MWl
■k&Jl
#
*J^
*
#£
^
#*S
*
£^
*
#^
A*
zhan
qichezhan
huochezhan
qTn
fuqin
muqin
tong
ertong
wen
xTnwen
zhT
zhfye
Eiao
Mao tianr
hai
haizi
nanhair
nQhair
-On
sunzi
qi
qT che
jia
laojia
ge
pige
xie
xiezi
pixie
station, to be standing up
bus stop
railway station
parent, relatives, in person
father
mother
child
children
to hear
news
post
profession
to chat
to chat
child
child
boy
girl
grandson
grandson
to ride
to ride a bike
to drive
excuse me
leather
leather
shoe
shoe
leather shoe
c

tte&W&fc? o
The Structures and Writing of the New Characters
•3- I^H gong zi pang The Radical of X
The pictographic script X (see page 51) as a phonetic component is modified
as " I " when used on the left side of a character, but it can also appear on the top>
the right or the lower pa l of a character.
*5
1 2
*
1
2
q i ao coincidental
JEF] zhengqiao to happen to
gong effort
$$} chenggong to succeed
0>i ©A
A
±^31 tu zi pang The Radical of ±
The pictographic script ±_ (see page 78) as a radical is generally related to
earth, region or position. It often stands on the left when written as " J ", but may
also be used as a lower component of a character.
©^
U |2
3
zuo to sit
Tft% qTng zu6 Sit down please!
Qh
©> ®±
154

-o a*TR5«*t±)
£
m
1 2
©ftt
1
2
1
2
»^
o
1 2
O
1 2
<D
Z01 at, on
^M- ZQi jio at home
©r
- /- t
©±
dl ground
^fe^T difang pkce
Sfe _t dishang on the ground
Jfl P dixta underground
CD* ©■&
zhT address
Sfeifc dfZhT address
(Dt
©It
chdng open field
f^} guangchang square
"lltfl^ feijTchang airport
r^^^ tingchechang parking area
(D±
©^
5 * *
kudi piece
—$UL yikuair together
(D±
©^Cgudi)
-T ^ i i.
hudi bad
(D±
©>F
cheng town
jSM jin cheng to go into town

Kswfta*? o-
1
2
fttH. cheng li in a city
MT|] chengshi town, city
®± ©$
-3L i^^ wang zi pang The Radical of 3E
The radical of 3E is modified when functioning as a side component. This pic-
tographic script 3£ (see page 111) indicates a general category of jade as work of
art or ornaments. As a le -omponent it is written as " J ".
©3?C
wan to play
£fScJL haowanr enjoyable
1
2
<Di
©tg
©
1
2
- t + ***.*.
©n
qiu ball
JSLifcJc zuqiu football
il&Bjt diqiu the earth, the globe
0) 5 ©^(qiu)
xian now, to appear
M^E xianzai now
tijSft Chuxian to appear, to emerge
0)1 ©JJtL
"T" 4^31 niu zi pang The Radical of 41
The pictographic script 41 (see page 88) as a radical suggests an ox or
anything related to it. It often stands on the left of a character when written as "% ",
but sometimes it may appear on the top or at the lower part of a character. When
used as a radical its writing order is different from that of its independent form.
1
2
156

o S¥iR^«*(±)
©
wu thing
%\JM iTwu gift, present
1
2
©$
CD^f(wu)
©#
1-?
3
- •+ -fr
te special
^F^lJ tebie special
-^F" $^31 che zl pang The Radical of $
The pictographic script *fc (see page 106) as a radical is related to vehicles.
When used as a left component its writing order is different from that of its
independent form.
qmg light
£f%k nianqlng young
3
®$
©+®2
7
Z~
z.
5
£
o
liang (a measure word)
1 2
®
D^
1
2
<D$
(DM
jiao to compare
fct$£ bTjiao to compare
(D$ ©£
-2- ±l¥^ ft zl pang The Radical of jl
m^"£"J*!Jg 57 Kc ^"ff^^w^^^tti^r^. £^#£^ft
157

»*»«!*? O
The pictographic script jl (see page 57) as a radical is used to describe the
action or state of standing. When functioning as a left component it is modified as
" i ", but sometimes it may appear at the upper or lower part of a character.
M
1 2
& ,
1
2
©
1
2
^
^
tV.
zhan station, to be standing up
^C$&£ qichezhan bus stop
JC*£ifc huochezhan railway station
Qi ©£(zhan)
1
r-
,»■
£
£
qm parent, relatives, in person
5t^ fuqin father
#^ muqin mother
;ji
©*
—
T
iT
^
tong child
) IM. ertong children
®iL ©M
-^ ^^^ er zi pang The Radical of ^
The pictographic script ^ (see page 61) as a radical is often related to an ear
or hearing. The position of the radical is changeable. It is modified as ? when used
t ie eft side of a character.
m
1
2
wen to hear
§frpfl xlnwen news
©n ©^
158

1
G
1
»1
2
>]
2
W
w
zhi post
BR# zhiye proft
©S ©K(zhD
Mao to chat
5KJL liaotianr
;ssion
l
TT
cr
R
to chat
©I ©^P(mao)
*
£
5
P
■ vj
$p
o ft¥iR5B*(.t)
^ ^£ zT zi pang The Radical of =£
The pictographic script ^ (see page 52) as a radical is related_to children.
When used as a left component of a character it is written as ^?. It may also stand
at the lower part of a character.
© isk
1
2
>$h
1
2
hai child
Jg^ haizi child
j^S^JL nanhair boy
&•$.)[> nQhair girl
©-F ©^(hai)
sOn grandson
if*? sunzi grandson
©-F ®/h
-% ^^ ma zi pang The Radical of ^
The pictographic script Ej (see page 88) as a radical is often related to horses.
It is modified as 5 when standing on the left side of a character.

.%*W«HR* o-
1-?
3
© -^Fy qi to ride
§^^ qi che to ride a bike
-tiy jia to drive
^!f^§ laojia excuse me
(D+©ftl(jia)
- * * jk- jk- Jz. Jz. jk.
1 2
1 # A ^n Aj
®4
-^ ¥=?3I ge zi pang The Radical of ^
The pictographic script $ as a radical is generally related to leather. When
standing on the left side of a character it is modified as $ .
-==p* ge leather
$£?$. pfge leather
The ancient written form of Jf is in the
shape of ni n 's s in.
j£IjjfcIjjy _^_ljp. Jj£... ..jj£._ . jjj£.Jj£
±-m^it^",^m^^3fmuc,mmm^mmmnmc
The top component of ^f is it, in the middle is a flat P. Its final stroke links
up with-the fouth stroke.

-o jy^iF^iI*(±)
£) ^ph xie shoe
Hi-P Xiezi shoe
jS^I pixie leather shoe
(OT ©± ©±
1
2
3
tt®«i.ia!I8]W
Rl Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
vWMuiPiffl
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
*5:
&:
£:
&:
*&:
*
*
^
*
*
*
j£*5 iL*5 7 **5
#4* *kT £T#. £T^r
*&£ jE£ ^& &%>& £ft Z&t-
i&Tf Jfeii ik_t 4&T Jfc* &K. iJfc
-£jM& ;UM& /-*& &*& M £*&
^■4* $L^ — *&*.**
;5& A& —* -&X. ft&
JSJ& 3^LJ^ 3$.^ 3$J& m&$L ^L& &#
: *L4fr Ajfc 4Nfe 51^
i 4* *..£# *■$# t'M&
: A-* *-f" ±'« **
: 5C#f ## #A. #ij #-f #* #JP
T^^
#r!& i&£ #£
#-f JJL# flg# &#
161

3K*W«ffi=£ o
Read the Following Sentences.
2. A:3Mfc£*&e.T:&fl#4-*P7,T^$-T#
3. M;OL-£n/-*&tf>Mfr*>]£.
4. ^g^MM5-*.*-^***.
5. JL±*fe<M.
6. 43lS-2t^r^St,JL^*fe,^rT.4lJ(d — & ;L-£ *p a St.
8. SM5.&T4.
9. ^^.tt,^^,,
10. ^JiT^.Jfcitio
11. A:^H4MHt&?
12. ^^iUfc-tttafrfflTo
13. ^^^49»*f^M*T4B^L*,^
14. te£fc*:£&#£ilT&4fc#Jfe*to
15. #-§-2t<xThuan, to like>^^3t^^Jk^?

+-i
xJSglr Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Radicals of Chinese Characters (B)
m^^u^"M"iknm^^W\^n^u^^"^uA"^. X£n: 'W(ma)ft j*f
^^«^"(ma),"^M(iiao)K)^^Ji"^(jiao)0
The radicals of Chinese characters may be classified into two types; picto-
graphic radicals and phonetic radicals. The significant part of a combined character
is known as a pictographic radical. The side part used to indicate the pronunciation
of a character is known as a phonetic radical. Of the radicals P , g , Tfc and ik.
belong to the pictographic radical, the first one is related to a human mouth*the
second to human eyes, the third to wood, and the last one to fire. The character ff§
j a phonetic indicator Sj, and & contains a honetic side of $£.
tt&mM¥M¥M.¥x.^m&£T&ft,^Mm%z&£Tmnmft
Therefore it is helpful for learners to work out the meaning of & character by
studying its significant part. S'milarly phonetic parts are also good for learners to

K*w«a^o
memorize the pronunciation of characters. However, the formation, meaning and
pronunciation of Chinese characters have changed greatly in the process of social
transformation and language development. As a result many of them no longer
provide sufficient significant or phonetic information of characters. Not every radical
ndicites the precise nessaige of a character.
£¥8S
List of New Characters and Words
1. #
3&#
2. A
AUfc
3. #
—jgb
it*
#]S*
$pj&
#*
4. *
##
5. A
*^
6. #£
7. #F
;fc*r"
8. Afc
^^
9. #
bCi
paobu
CI
congcT
xie
yixie
zhexie
naxie
naxie
youxie
chT
yachT
chong
chongzi
she
xia
daxia
wen
wenzi
yi
step
to run, to jog
this
from then on
some
some
these
those
which (plural)
there are some
tooth
tooth
worm
worm
snake
shrimp
prawn
mosquito
mosquito
chair

o K^iR^»#(±)
#^
10: jk
£^
11. H
%LH
12. #
*f^
^*P
13. ^
J&jte&»
-f-&
14. #
-#
i&#
##
&&#
#^
15. #.
$fc
fc*
16. *L
Jk^S.
Jfc*L
3&*L
17. ft
Xtil
*tJf
18. $
#-t
IZI
zhuo
zhuozi
shu
guoshu
bei
beizi
gan bei
ji
zhaoxiangjl
houjT
yang
yiyang
zheyang
ndyang
zenmeyang
yangzi
xiao
xuexiao
xidozhang
ban
heiban
dibcin
laoban
©xiang
huxiang
©xiang
xiangpian
lou
loushang
chair
table
table
tree
fruit tree
cup
cup
cheers
machine
camera
mobile phone
look, type
same
this way, such
such a way
how
appearance, manner
school
school
principal
board
blackboard
(wooden) floor
boss
mutual
mutually
photograph
photo
storied building
upstairs
165

3K*Wi*m* o
*L*
19. &
*.&
20. #
#^
21. %
—%Lt%l
%%
22. jJB
46*
23. *L
—*IT
24. #
i£#
25. &
*£*
26. &
*&jl
27. #
&&
28. #
Jfcfl-
29. &
#*.
30. #
*fr#
daiou
gai
dagai
ju
juzi
jia
yT jia feijT
shujia
gui
guizi
Ji
•••jile
qiao
lijiaoqiao
J)
. jfhe
tiao
miantiaor
a
zazh?
liao
yTnliao
tang
tangguo
JTng
jihgcai
building
general
generally
orange
orange
shelf, frame
a plane
bookshelves
cupboard
cabinet, cupboard
extremity, very
extremely
bridge
overpass
to collect, to gather
to gather together
(a measure word)
noodle
miscellaneous, mixed
magazine
stuff
drink
sugar
sweets
essence
excellent
166

-o a#ms»*t±)
The Structures and Writing of the New Characters
it^-W zhT zi pang The Radical of jt
The pictographic script jh (see page 129) as a radical is often related to feet. It
may also be used as a phonetic component of a character. When standing on the left
it should he modified as it. Sometimes it also stands on the top of a character.
bU step
SrHii? paobu to run, to jog
©it (M
ifcb
1
2
jfcb
it
1
.1
'}
cT this
.Mjtfc cangcT from then on
©Jt
©fc(bT)
' fc
xie some
—& yixie some
i^-® zhexie these
<& naxie those
5££ naxie which (plural)"?
youxie there are some
out ©-
chl tooth
3fHf yacht tooth
©Jt ®w
/
A
^
1*1
167

9K*!ffiaiR^ o
A J^^SI chong zi pang The Radical of &
The pictographic script ^ as a radical is often related to insects, worms or
small animals.
ffe
chong worm
}&-f- chongzi worm
The ancient written form of ife is in the
shape of a worm with a small head and
curved body and tail. H is the
complicated form of the character. Worms often
move about together, so the ancients use
threes ^ to symbolize "worms".
k & & k k k
The top component of ^ i a f1 t /ith aj-orizor ■ slanting upward,
she snake
1
2
3
i
i
2
®4 ©+®-eCta)
xia shrimp
^&F daxia prawn
©m ©T
' ^ ^ 'E
168

O iWiR5«*(±)
1
2
wen mosquito
$£-?" wenzi mosquito
®4 ©£
?K^^ mu zi pang The Radical of Tfc
The pictographic script ^C (see page 78) as a radical is related to trees. When
standing on the left of a character* it is written as " ^ ". Sometimes it is also used
on the top or at the lower part of a character.
• ft
yT chair
ffsf-?- yTzi chair
<D* ©+®^(qi)
1
2
3
(0
<D
n
1
2
3
zhuo table
M~F zhuozi table
<D'
Shu tree
Tp^j* guoshu fruit tree
1
t-
l"
1*7
£
&
©*
®*
©* ®7f
If
1
2
©
in
bei cup
^f-? beizi cup
"P^P gan bei cheers
®* ©^
jT machine

^mmfsi^ o-
1
2
©
1
2
©
1
2
»ffi
1
2
© ffi
1
2
©
1
2
3
M^Stfl zhaoxiangjT camera
^$L shoujT mobile phone
<D* ©;i
yang look, type
—~ffi yfyong same
j^T^ zheyang this way, such
3$^ nayang such a way
i^^^ zenmeyang how
^"? yangzi appearance, manner
®* ©^
xido school
^$£ xuexido school
^■^. xiaozhang principal
CD* ©£
ban board
JIMiSt he i ban blackboard
itfefe dlbfin (wooden) floor
^Ml iaoban boss
®* ©S(fan)
(Dxiang mutual
JlJffi huxiang mutually
©Xidng photograph
^M* xiongpidn photo
©* ©@
I6u storied building
^j|„t loushang upstairs
^^ dalou building
~ r & jsl
CD* ©+®^(lou;
?fc
170

-o S*iR5iS*(±)
©
1
2
3
f£
x2
3
a SB
*g
1 2
© ^
1 2
© Iff
1 2
© Jft
1 2
3
gai general
~fc$k dagai generally
(D* ©I
1 1 ^
3
?
t
(3)Sl
i^
/
A
ju orange
+§-? juzi orange
CD* ©+®l§f<jT)
jia shelf, frame
—*^ni#L yT jid feijT a plane
^|£c Shujia bookshelves
(D+©ftl<iia) ©*
gui cupboard
|&-p guizi cabinet, cupboard
®* ©ecju)r I ^ I * I e
jl extremity, very
$fcT j'le extremely
—
-*-
Jr
1
*
y
J#
jBl
<D* ©&(ji)
qiao bridge
-&3t# lijiaoqiao overpass
®* ©^(qiao)
jf to coll
©+©#
ect,to ga
to gath
/
A
—
JS-
f-
^
&
*
ther
zt together
*
r
r
*
#
^
®*

**j5«ft* o
© ^r
tiao (a measure word)
M£k)L miantiaor noodle
' j? *-
<JAs
7K
za miscellaneous, mixed
ifeieS zazhl magazine
^ #^ ml zi pang The Radical of %
The pictographic script ?ffc (see page 79) as a radical is often related to food.
When stard'ng it le of a character it is written as " Jf ".
lido stuff
^^ yTnlido drink
®* ©4(ddu)
1
2
pj tang sugar
W;^ tangguo sweets
1
2
(D* ©JSCtang)
Jing essence
W$& jlngcai excellent
/ F r- p- P- m
(D* ©i
172

-o 3l^iR^a*(±)
ikm&^zmftsi?
Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
3&# —# Jt# jHf Afc#
—# ^"* ii^ #F* "#?* Jt^ £*
fa
-# &# *# *W £&# #&# #^
&$Lfa Jffa ~^fa 4B&,
^«. &n &-£ #*£
&& >^& Afe,*L
4$& *.& CD& —^Ufa
4?^& *-*£ W
*:« $$ #-t #T Jl# T#
Read the Following Sentences.
4. 4^^M^*Mfc£^£?
173

*#»«&* o —
. io. i^.ttT^"/-^^-
11. H**,—S£t*ULJtftJ:34.ti±*To
12. jM&.£&&3f±Jf? **,3fc*LJnk.^T.
13. *F>t*F#3-&#M&.£.
14. +^^,lf^N*M^
15. 4**J£*-£tf &H .*.&—fe(yiqT, together)#ft.# £. 0
174

+=u
S**OiR
Rudiments of Chinese Characters
The Writing of Chinese Characters (C)
The Modification of the Right-Falling Strokes
When used on the left of a character, a component containing a right falling
(often as a final stroke) is written as a dot. For example;
*
*
&
Jfc
*
->
->
->
->
->
1 :
#:
*.
*!
*-;
#£
»
0
mt
*
*
'X
X
A
7C
->
->
->
->
-)
*«
*!
X :
>:
s*r.
ft
%
st
>R
»
Sn*-^^ JM-&, h#iw+-^±3?« ^«««Pt «jS.
If there are more than two right-falling strokes in a character* they can be
written as dots except the most important one remaining unchanged. For example;
175

K*Wf«fc* o
ifc:*+A &.#+*_ ^:it+# + X
The right-falling as a final stroke in some components should be made longer
wh n ed on the left of a character. For examples
— '" i
List of New Characters and Words
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
*
*
*+
#
-#
#
^^
*
#?
#
#*
#^
ifB.
&#l4
^
ii&]*|J
&
$L&
*T
he
he
heping
zhong
yl zhong
qiu
qiutian
J"
jijie
xiang
xiangshuT
Xiang Shan
zu
chuzuche
cheng
gongchengshT
shao
ashao
deng
seedlings of cereal crops
and, peace
peace
kind
a kind
autumn
autumn
season
season
fragrant
perfume
Fragrant Hill
to rent
taxi
order, rule
engineer
to burn
fever
lamp, light

O 5R^1R5**(±)
fc*T
%-m.ft
11. &
#u$
12. A
-,&;l
t£ji
£**)•
.£*«
13. &
&J&
14. &
^'H
is. m
JSLfa
16. £.
17. fr
frit
18. ft
ft*
19. &
K&
20. iL
-JUfc
21. *fr
#tf
*t^&
22. #
B^
*£i±
diandeng
honglQdeng
Nan
duanlidn
dian
yidianr
youdianr
wu dianzhong
dianxin
ran
ranhou
re
reqfng
zhao
zhao xiang
shT
zhT
hTdao
V ■
01
aixiao
duan
changduan
zhT
y i zhT ge
dui
duirnian
duibuqT
nan
kunnan
nanguo
electric lamp
traffic light
to smelt
physical training
dot, a bit, a little
a little bit
some,a little
five o'clock
refreshments
like that
afterwards
hot
enthusiasm, passion
to reflect,to take a picture
to take a photo
arrow
to know
to know
short
short
short
length
(a measure word)
a song
correct, right, to
opposite
sorry, excuse me
difficult
difficulty
sad

3fc&!)i&&&^ O
23. j£
&£.
X$L
££-
24. M
-fe
fe£
fell
25. *&
&£.&
26. JK
JK^
27. Jfe
jteo*
28. &
£/^
£#
T&
29. W
tr
30. f
f«
31. ^
^4r
32. £
£*l
£ft
fa
chufa
faxian
fashing
yiqi
qTlai
qTfei
yue
yue lai yue
zhua
zhuazi
pa
pa shan
ai
airen
aihao
ke ai
chuang
chuanghu
chuan
chuan yTfu
rong
rongyi
kong
kongqi
kongtiao
to send out
to start off
to discover
to happen, to take place
to begin
together
to get up
to take off
to cross
more and more
claw
claw, paw
to climb up
to climb up mountains
to love
husband or wife
hobby
lovely
window
window
to wear, cross
to wear clothes
to allow
easy
empty
air, atmosphere
air-conditioning
178

-o S¥iR§S*(J:)
»W«»5*S
The Structures and Writing of the New Characters
?M^?I he mu pang The Radical of 7^
The pictographic ^ as a radical is generally related to cereal crops or
agriculture. When standing on the left it is written as " ^ ". It may also be used on the top
of a character. The radical %i functions as a pnonetic component in fn.
^
he seedlings of cereal crops
The ancient written form of ^ is like a
plant with ears of grain dangling about.
pfe #L 7^ ^L ^C -1 j t " ",_ h
The character of ^ is written by adding a left falling short stroke to the to of
*.
1
2
he and, peace
^tl^ heping peace

&%mm5s& o~
#
1 2
o$c
1 z
©^
1
2
a
1
2
o fe
1
2
3
zhong kind
—ffi yi zhong a kind
qiu autumn
$C^; qiutian autumn
©* ©A
jT season
^TjT jijie season
a>7fc ©^
xiang fragrant
^7jC xiangshuT perfume
#ll| Xiang Shan Fragrant Hill
(D* ©0
zu to rent
ii}|fi$ chuzuche taxi
m ©_&(qie)
Cheng order, rule
T^jfFp gongchengshT engineer
©* ©+®M(cheng)
1
n
H
H
JL
- i
^1^^ huo zi pang The Radical of >X
180

-o a=?TR=?»*(±)
The pictographic script jk. (see page 74) as a radical is generally related to
fire. When standing on the left of a character, it is written as "^ ", hut when use
at the lower part of a character, it is written as w„„" known as four-dot bottom.
shao to burn
^^ fashao fever
0£m
1 2
([)
*T
1
2
<D >lfc
1
2
®* @38<yao)
deng lamp, light
%^T diandeng electric lamp
fen^ifcT honglGdeng traffic light
- * * * P fL
~ T
®* ©T(dTng)
Man to smelt
duanlian physical training
0* ®%
'MM
<B >U
0
<D
#1
dian dot, a bit, a little
-^J^UL yidionr a little bit
Wj^UL youdionr some, a little
Ej^^f* wu dianzhong five o'clock
M.& dionxin refreshments
ran like that
^J5 ranhdu afterwards
J
**
***
****
<D*
' l» I'M ®a\iMm^
re hot
^ffeliff reqing enthusiasm, passion
181

l|2
3
1 2
3
© H ©A(wan) M \M&
®,
zhao to reflect,to take a picture
fii^H zhao xiang to take a photo
CDB ©+®S(zhao) ®,
^ 2^31 shT zi pang The Radical of $z
The pictographic ^ as a radical is often associated with arrow. The radical
stands at the left part of a character and it is written as £ 0
<D
£c
shT arrow
1
/
/-
A-
5-
&
©
%
1
2
©
1 2
zhl to know
&lati zhldao to know
CD* ©P
ai short
j§|/h aixiao short
©£ ©+©^(wei)
duan short
1[kj%L changduan length
®£ ©M
* *
J^ X^^ you zi pang The Radical of X
182

O &«« (Jt)
The pictographic script JL (see page 66) as a radical is often
hands. When standing on the left of a character, it is written as * jt **. It
be used at the lower part of a character.
3C
©
*r
1
2
1
2
3
1
2
zhT (a measure word)
—^M. yi zhT ge a song
dui correct, right, to
MM duimian opposite
XsRnB dubuqT sorry, excuse me
nan difficult
Ej® kunnan difficulty
jffijtit nangud sad
CD* ©+©^(zhuD
fa to send out
iBj£ chufa to start off
^SE fax ion to discover
j^^fe. fasheng to happen, to take place
©+©£
*- r % it X
j£¥W ZOU z! pang The Radical of ^
The pictographic script j& (see page 99) as a radical is often associated with
fast walking or running. When used on the left of a character, it is written as "j|_"
with a longer right falling.

B£*lBi«Sl^ O-
1
2
qT to begin
—-jJ3 yiqT together
jJS^fc qTlai to get up
tSsPS qifei to take off
(D£_ ©BCjT)
O
2
1
yue to cross
jJS^fcjfS yue lai yue more and more
' r k k k
Jf^ JlV?^ zhua zi pang The Radical of /R
%Lik,fe¥M±.mnj&"w w*r/R^w .
The pictographic Jft as a radical is often associated with the movement of a
hand. When used on the left of a character, it is written as /R with a longer right
falling. When standing at the top of a character, it is written as " known as "the
top in the shape of /R'\
/It
zhua claw
JR-J1 zhuazi claw, paw
Wo J^IM^lJlW JR?0
The ancient written form of JR. is a human
V hand stretchig down for something. It has
by extension come to mean "animal's
paw" or "claw".
%|7NJJM^v|f| | 1 |-| | | -
35-.*»'£».#IH-&«.**S*;. Sr.H.HK

-o iWiR5«*{±)
The second stroke of JH is a left falling, in the middle is a vertical, on the
right is a right falling. All of the three strokes link up with the first flat falling.
©
m
1
2
pa to climb up
jl^lil pa Shan to climb up mountain
®JL- ©B
©
di to love
^A airen husband or wife
J£#F aihao hobby
Hr^ ke'ai lovely
©^ ©~ ®&(you)
- r a a
^ "K^M-Jl xue bao gair The Radical of 5t
The ancient writing ^ is in the shape of a residential cave, thus it is related to
caves or holes. The radical often stands at the upper part of a character with a dot
as its final right-falling stroke.
© Hf
w
chuang window
tif^ chuanghu window
©*
©|£|(c6ng)
i n n n n m
chuan to wear, cross
S^^clHl Chuan yTfu to wear clothes
®
|£**T
©5?
185

ymmmm o-
>v*
O "TT* r6n9 to allow
%£M rongyi easy
1
2
3
®v:
i
2
0^
kong
©^ ©n
empty
kongqi air, atmosphere
kongtiao air-conditioning
S)X
ikim.mmn'o}?
Read the Following Words, Phrases and Sentences
Read the Following Words and Phrases.
3fc
—# i£# ## 3W &#A~ 7L#
#.* &# t*t &i* ^K
4^ $L^ ^T^ E?#
£& &#-
B?,jfa jaifr ja^
y£% j£*ft #w& *£*£ *tt **£ 5£#tT
186

■o ix?iR5»*{±)
*
£: £A £^ *t± ft& '-
Read the Following Sentences.
2. ifc$L4^7,-t4p&o
4. ^^^xtAJi^^^^-r ^^-tr^o
10. te^yMH^M&^o
li. *p>H^Hfe*ftti&£*?
12. 4fc-(rt-fJ:/\.A^#«.*nft^,/VA+^jbA.
13. #*&,it#;MM^7,#iMF-£—,&JL#?
14. ^&#ifb^#Ajt&;{M££ T o
15. &m^£S«^^^«>o
187