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mǎi — “to buy”

How to write and say the Chinese character (mǎi), which means to buy — with stroke order, audio, its story, and an example sentence. Theme: Everyday actions.

Pinyin · 拼音 mǎi
Meaning · 意思 to buy
Strokes · 笔画 6
Radical · 部首 (big)
Hear it · 听发音
Watch it drawn stroke by stroke →

Stroke order笔顺

买 is written with 6 strokes, in this order (the red stroke is the one being added):

The story behind it字源小故事

Simplified from 買 — a net scooping up shells, the coins of long ago. Shopping!

A common word常用词

mǎicài

buy groceries

Example sentence例句

machāoshìmǎicài

Mum buys groceries at the supermarket.

This page is part of the free Chinese character explorer from Casey Foundation Chinese School — a Saturday community Chinese school in Narre Warren, Victoria, serving Berwick, Cranbourne, Hallam and families across Melbourne's southeast. New students get a free trial lesson.