How is 手 pronounced?

手 is pronounced “shǒu” in pinyin.

What HSK level is 手?

手 belongs to HSK 1 in the HSK 3.0 vocabulary.

How do you write 手?

Follow the stroke-order animation above; 手 is written using standard stroke order. Practice it in the writing trainer.

HSK 1nounmeasure word

手

shǒu

手 (shǒu) means “hand; (formal) to hold; person engaged in certain types of work; person skilled in certain types of work; personal(ly); convenient; classifier for skill”. It is an HSK 1 Chinese character in the HSK 3.0 vocabulary.

Measure word: 双,只

Stroke order

Practice writing

Example

吃饭前要洗手。

Chīfàn qián yào xǐ shǒu.

You need to wash your hands before eating.

Words containing 手

爱不释手ài bù shì shǒu(idiom) to like sth so much that one is reluctant to put it down; to find sth utterly irresistible 把手bǎ shǒuto shake hands 手表shǒu biǎowristwatch 手机shǒu jīcell phone; mobile phone 不择手段bù zé shǒu duànby fair means or foul; by hook or by crook; unscrupulously 洗手间xǐ shǒu jiāntoilet; lavatory; washroom 对手duì shǒuopponent; rival; competitor; (well-matched) adversary; match 分手fēn shǒuto part company; to split up; to break up 动手dòng shǒuto set about (a task); to hit; to punch; to touch 手工shǒu gōnghandwork; manual 手术shǒu shù(surgical) operation; surgery 手套shǒu tàoglove; mitten

More HSK 1 vocabulary

HSK 1 →

爱àito love; to be fond of; to like; affection; to be inclined (to do sth); to tend to (happen)的deof; ~'s (possessive particle); (used after an attribute); (used to form a nominal expression); (used at the end of a declarative sentence for emphasis); also pr. [dì] or [di] in poetry and songs 八bāeight; 8 爸爸bà ba(coll.) father; dad 了le(completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause)我wǒI; me; my 杯子bēi zicup; glass 是shìto be (followed by substantives only); correct; right; true; (respectful acknowledgement of a command) very well; (adverb for emphatic assertion)你好nǐ hǎohello 北京běi jīngBeijing, capital of the People's Republic of China 你nǐyou (informal, as opposed to courteous 您)在zàito exist; to be alive; (of sb or sth) to be (located) at; (used before a verb to indicate an action in progress)

Frequently asked questions

What does 手 mean?: 手 (shǒu) means “hand; (formal) to hold; person engaged in certain types of work; person skilled in certain types of work; personal(ly); convenient; classifier for skill”. It is an HSK 1 word.
How is 手 pronounced?: 手 is pronounced “shǒu” in pinyin.
What HSK level is 手?: 手 belongs to HSK 1 in the HSK 3.0 vocabulary.
How do you write 手?: Follow the stroke-order animation above; 手 is written using standard stroke order. Practice it in the writing trainer.

Updated: 2026-07-18