Calligraphy & Handwriting Reference

Chinese Character Strokes Chart: The 8 Fundamental & 28 Standard Strokes

In modern Chinese orthography, every character is built from 6 basic stroke directions that expand into the classical Eight Principles of Yong (永字八法) and the 28 official standard strokes (汉字笔画名称表). Understanding whether a corner is a single compound stroke (折, zhé) or two separate strokes is the key to accurate stroke counts and dictionary lookup.

Standard Strokes

8 Pillars

Fundamental Types

Read Complete 8 Rules Guide & Exceptions →

The 8 Fundamental Strokes of 永 (Yǒngzì Bāfǎ)

丶#1 · 点 (diǎn)

Dot (Diǎn)

Top-left to bottom-right press

Touch lightly with the pen tip, press down at a 45° angle, and pause cleanly at the base.

永主太火

一#2 · 横 (héng)

Horizontal (Héng)

Left to right (slight 3°–5° upward tilt)

Draw firmly from left to right with a subtle upward slope and a crisp stop at the right end.

一二三十

丨#3 · 竖 (shù)

Vertical (Shù)

Top to bottom along vertical axis

Keep the vertical spine dead straight; acts as the load-bearing pillar of the character.

十中木川

丿#4 · 撇 (piě)

Left-Falling (Piě)

Top-right sweeping down-left to a fine point

Start with firm pressure and lift the pen smoothly as you sweep toward the bottom-left corner.

人大木手

乀#5 · 捺 (nà)

Right-Falling (Nà)

Top-left pressing down-right with a horizontal foot

Begin lightly, gradually increase pressure down the diagonal, pause at the "foot", and flick right.

人大天木

㇀#6 · 提 (tí)

Rising Flick (Tí)

Bottom-left flicking sharply up-right

Press firmly at the bottom-left start and flick briskly upward toward the next stroke.

水江把地

亅#7 · 钩 (gōu)

Hook (Gōu)

Pause at stroke end and flick sharply inward

Never round off a hook; pause briefly at the bottom corner before flicking a short, sharp point.

水小手月

𠃍#8 · 折 (zhé)

Corner Turn (Zhé)

Continuous directional pivot without lifting the pen

Pause at the corner pivot to create a crisp shoulder without lifting the pen off the paper.

口日田国

Complete Table of 28 Standard Chinese Strokes (基本笔画与复合折笔)

#	Stroke	Chinese Name	Pinyin	Type	Pen Trajectory & Technique	Example Characters
1	丶	Dot (Diǎn) 点	diǎn	Basic (1 Movement)	Top-left to bottom-right press: Touch lightly with the pen tip, press down at a 45° angle, and pause cleanly at the base.	永主太火
2	一	Horizontal (Héng) 横	héng	Basic (1 Movement)	Left to right (slight 3°–5° upward tilt): Draw firmly from left to right with a subtle upward slope and a crisp stop at the right end.	一二三十
3	丨	Vertical (Shù) 竖	shù	Basic (1 Movement)	Top to bottom along vertical axis: Keep the vertical spine dead straight; acts as the load-bearing pillar of the character.	十中木川
4	丿	Left-Falling (Piě) 撇	piě	Basic (1 Movement)	Top-right sweeping down-left to a fine point: Start with firm pressure and lift the pen smoothly as you sweep toward the bottom-left corner.	人大木手
5	乀	Right-Falling (Nà) 捺	nà	Basic (1 Movement)	Top-left pressing down-right with a horizontal foot: Begin lightly, gradually increase pressure down the diagonal, pause at the "foot", and flick right.	人大天木
6	㇀	Rising Flick (Tí) 提	tí	Basic (1 Movement)	Bottom-left flicking sharply up-right: Press firmly at the bottom-left start and flick briskly upward toward the next stroke.	水江把地
7	𠃍	Horizontal Turn (Héng Zhé) 横折	héng zhé	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Right, then pivot straight down: Pause at the top-right shoulder before pulling the vertical segment inward slightly.	口日目田
8	㇇	Horizontal Left-Sweep (Héng Piě) 横撇	héng piě	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Short right, then sweep down-left: Keep the horizontal bar compact and make the diagonal sweep crisp and balanced.	水又友夕
9	乛	Horizontal Hook (Héng Gōu) 横钩	héng gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Right, then flick a short hook down-left: Used in roof radicals (宀/冖); keep the hook short and pointed toward the center.	写字买家
10	∟	Vertical Turn (Shù Zhé) 竖折	shù zhé	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Down, then turn flat right: Form a firm 90° bottom-left corner without lifting the pen.	山出医区
11	𠄌	Vertical Rising Flick (Shù Tí) 竖提	shù tí	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Straight down, then flick sharply up-right: Pause at the bottom of the vertical shaft before flicking upward at 45°.	长民衣很
12	㇄	Vertical Curve (Shù Wān) 竖弯	shù wān	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Down with a smooth rounded bend to the right: Unlike Shù Zhé, the bottom-left transition is a smooth rounded curve, not a sharp angle.	四西酒票
13	亅	Vertical Hook (Shù Gōu) 竖钩	shù gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Straight down, then flick a sharp hook up-left: Keep the vertical spine straight and flick the hook concisely to the upper-left.	水小寸可
14	㇁	Curved Spine Hook (Wān Gōu) 弯钩	wān gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Gently bowed vertical spine ending in an up-left hook: The start point and the bottom hook should still align along the same vertical centerline.	家狗猫猪
15	㇂	Slanted Hook (Xié Gōu) 斜钩	xié gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Long sweeping curve from top-left to bottom-right with an upward hook: Stretch the diagonal bow boldly—it forms the longest structural backbone in characters like 我.	我成战钱
16	㇃	Reclining Heart Hook (Wò Gōu) 卧钩	wò gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Crescent base curve from left to right, hooking up-left: Signature stroke of the Heart radical (心); keep the bottom flat and point the hook toward the center dot.	心想思念
17	𡿨	Left-Sweep Turn (Piě Zhé) 撇折	piě zhé	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Slant down-left, then turn sharply right/slightly up: Forms the base of the Silk radical (纟) and characters like 云; keep the bottom bar slightly rising.	云去公红
18	𡿨	Left-Sweep Dot (Piě Diǎn) 撇点	piě diǎn	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Sweep down-left, then pivot into a long right-falling dot: Core stroke of the Woman radical (女); the V-angle at the waist should sit near 90°–100°.	女好妈姐
19	𠃌	Horizontal Turn Hook (Héng Zhé Gōu) 横折钩	héng zhé gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Right, straight down, then hook up-left: Frames enclosing characters like 月 and 同; keep left and right vertical pillars parallel.	月用同门
20	㇊	Horizontal Turn Flick (Héng Zhé Tí) 横折提	héng zhé tí	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Short right, straight down, then flick sharply up-right: Defines the Speech radical (讠); align the top dot directly above the vertical stem.	说话读语
21	㇅	Horizontal Double Turn (Héng Zhé Zhé) 横折折	héng zhé zhé	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Right, down, then turn flat right again: Maintain crisp 90° corners at both bends.	凹卍
22	㇍	Horizontal Turn Curve (Héng Zhé Wān) 横折弯	héng zhé wān	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Right, down, then curve smoothly right without a hook: Note in 没 and 船 that the top-right component ends in a flat curve, not a hook.	没船铅沿
23	乚	Vertical Curve Hook (Shù Wān Gōu) 竖弯钩	shù wān gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Down, rounded bend right, flat base, then hook straight up: Called the "Floating Goose" stroke; make the bottom horizontal base broad and stable before flicking straight up.	儿七电也
24	㇈	Horizontal Turn Curve Hook (Héng Zhé Wān Gōu) 横折弯钩	héng zhé wān gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Right, slant/curve down, base right, then hook upward: Provides the sweeping right wing in 九, 几, and 风.	九几风飞
25	㇉	Vertical Double-Turn Hook (Shù Zhé Zhé Gōu) 竖折折钩	shù zhé zhé gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Down, turn right, turn down-left, then hook up-left: Forms the lower body of 马 (horse) and 鸟 (bird); keep the lower belly slightly inward.	马鸟写号
26	㇌	Ear Radical Double-Curve Hook (Héng Piě Wān Gōu) 横撇弯钩	héng piě wān gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Short right, sweep down-left, bow out into a lobe, and hook up-left: Written as ONE continuous stroke in the 阝 radical—never split the upper and lower lobes into two strokes.	那都院阳
27	㇋	Walking Radical Zigzag Sweep (Héng Zhé Zhé Piě) 横折折撇	héng zhé zhé piě	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Short right, slant down-left, turn right, then sweep down-left: Forms the stem of the Walking radical (辶) before the final flat pressing stroke carries the character.	这远道建
28	㇡	Triple-Turn Hook (Héng Zhé Zhé Zhé Gōu) 横折折折钩	héng zhé zhé zhé gōu	Compound (Turn / Hook)	Right, slant down-left, turn right, curve down, and hook up-left: Occurs in 乃 and 奶; keep the upper step narrower than the lower rounded belly.	乃仍奶孕