Guide
Chinese stroke order rules笔顺
Master the 7 stroke-order principles to write Chinese characters correctly, faster and more evenly. Each rule comes with an animated example that shows the strokes in order.
- 十1
Horizontal before vertical
先横后竖
Write a horizontal stroke before the vertical stroke that crosses it.
- 八2
Left-falling before right-falling
先撇后捺
The left-falling stroke comes before the right-falling one.
- 三3
Top to bottom
从上到下
Write strokes in order from top to bottom.
- 川4
Left to right
从左到右
Write strokes in order from left to right.
- 月5
Outside before inside
先外后内
Write the enclosing frame before the parts inside it.
- 回6
Seal the frame last
先里头后封口
Write the inside first, then close the bottom of the frame last.
- 小7
Middle before sides
先中间后两边
For symmetric characters, write the centre stroke first, then the two sides.
Why does stroke order matter?
Following the correct stroke order makes characters balanced and neat, lets you write faster, helps you memorise character shapes, and lets you look words up by stroke order accurately. It is the foundation to learn before real handwriting practice.
Ready to practice?
Apply the 7 rules right away to over 1500 characters on an interactive canvas.