Basic Chinese Strokes (基本筆畫): Names, Shapes and the Eight Principles of 永
The eight basic strokes, their Chinese names and common compound strokes, plus the classic calligraphy lesson hidden in the character 永.
Key takeaways
- Every character is built from a small set of strokes. The basic ones are 橫 horizontal, 豎 vertical, 撇 left-falling, 捺 right-falling, 點 dot, 提 rising, 折 turning and 鉤 hook.
- Compound strokes join these without lifting the pen, e.g. 橫折 (㇕), 豎鉤 (亅) and 橫折鉤 (𠃌).
- 永字八法, the Eight Principles of Yong, uses the character 永 to teach eight brush movements.
The basic strokes
| Stroke | Name | Pinyin / Jyutping | Direction | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 一 | 橫 héng / waang4 | horizontal | left → right | 三 |
| 丨 | 豎 shù / syu6 | vertical | top → bottom | 中 |
| 丿 | 撇 piě / pit3 | left-falling | top-right → bottom-left | 人 |
| ㇏ | 捺 nà / naat6 | right-falling | top-left → bottom-right | 八 |
| 丶 | 點 diǎn / dim2 | dot | short press | 主 |
| ㇀ | 提 tí / tai4 | rising | bottom-left → top-right | 打 |
| ㇕ | 折 zhé / zit3 | turning | changes direction | 口 |
| 亅 | 鉤 gōu / ngau1 | hook | quick flick at the end | 小 |
Common compound strokes
| Stroke | Name | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ㇕ | 橫折 horizontal-turn | 口, 日 |
| ㇆ | 橫折鉤 horizontal-turn-hook | 月, 同 |
| 亅 | 豎鉤 vertical-hook | 水, 小 |
| ㇄ | 豎折 / 豎彎 vertical-turn | 山 |
| ㇟ | 豎彎鉤 vertical-bend-hook | 兒, 也 |
| ㇂ | 斜鉤 slanting hook | 我, 戈 |
| ㇃ | 臥鉤 lying hook | 心 |
| ㇇ | 橫撇 horizontal-left-falling | 又 |
| ㇋ | 橫折折撇 | 建 |
| 𠃋 | 撇折 | 女 |
Names vary slightly between textbooks. The important thing is to recognise that a turning stroke is one stroke, which matters when you count strokes.
The Eight Principles of Yong (永字八法)
Calligraphy teachers have long used the character 永 (“forever”) because its five strokes contain eight fundamental brush movements. The traditional names are poetic:
- 側 cè – the dot, like a bird dropping from the sky
- 勒 lè – the horizontal, like reining in a horse
- 努 nǔ – the vertical, drawn with strength
- 趯 tì – the hook, a sudden kick
- 策 cè – the rising stroke, like a whip
- 掠 lüè – the long left-falling stroke, a sweeping brush
- 啄 zhuó – the short left-falling stroke, a pecking bird
- 磔 zhé – the right-falling stroke, spreading wide
Practising 永 repeatedly trains the pressure, speed and angle of each movement, which is why it opens so many calligraphy courses. See calligraphy scripts for where to go next.
Practising strokes
Start with single strokes on a 田字格 practice sheet, then move on to simple characters that isolate one stroke type: 三 for horizontals, 川 for verticals, 八 for falling strokes and 小 for hooks.
Related guides
Stroke order rules
The core rules that decide the order of strokes in almost every Chinese character, with examples, exceptions and why stroke order matters.
How to count strokes
How to count strokes correctly, why turning strokes count as one, and the radicals such as 艹, 辶 and 阝 that trip people up.
Calligraphy scripts
The major scripts in the history of Chinese writing, what each looks like, famous calligraphers, the Four Treasures of the Study and where a beginner should start.
Improve your handwriting
A practical method for neater Chinese handwriting: choosing 田字格 or 米字格 paper, tracing then copying, focusing on main strokes and proportion, and checking your work.