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yǒu — “friend”

How to write and say the Chinese character (yǒu), which means friend — with stroke order, audio, its story, and an example sentence. Theme: Family & people.

Pinyin · 拼音 yǒu
Meaning · 意思 friend
Strokes · 笔画 4
Radical · 部首 (right hand)
Hear it · 听发音
Watch it drawn stroke by stroke →

Stroke order笔顺

友 is written with 4 strokes, in this order (the red stroke is the one being added):

The story behind it字源小故事

Picture it: two hands 又 joined, representing friendship; 又 also provides the pronunciation.

A common word常用词

hǎoyǒu

good friend

Example sentence例句

xiǎopéngyǒumenshǒushǒu

The little friends hold hands.

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.