树 (shù) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

树

shù[shu4]Tone 4

tree

HSK 1

View Traditional FormSwitch to Traditional

樹

Guru Deep Dive

English · tree

Cached lesson

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:9

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (wood radical) should be narrower and slightly compressed to leave ample room for the complex right-side components.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form 樹 uses 尌 on the right side, which was simplified to 对 (or rather, the phonetic component was streamlined).

1. Meaning

tree

to cultivateto set upto establish

Noun / VerbNeutral#plants#nature#actions

Sample Usage

院子里有一棵大树。
yuànzi li yǒu yī kē dà shù.
There is a big tree in the courtyard.
我们要树立好榜样。
wǒmen yào shùlì hǎo bǎngyàng.
We need to set up/establish a good example.

2. Sound

/[ʂu⁵¹]/Tone: 51

树

shùshu4

`(51)

=shù

Initial Consonant

Type: Retroflex Fricative

Sounds like: sh sound with retroflex tongue position

UnaspiratedRetroflex

Airflow Tactile Test: Hollow wind sound through curled tongue channel.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip curled back near hard palate without touching it

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -u vowel group

Sounds like: oo sound as in boot or shoe

Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'oo'.

Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.

Tone

T4 (51)

5 → 1 (51)

4th Tone (High-Falling)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 4 starts high and plunges sharply to the bottom, mirroring an emphatic command or a definitive period at the end of a sentence.

Sandhi: When followed by another 4th tone word, the tone 4 drops slightly less sharply in natural speech cadence.

👂

Listening trap: Often confused with 3rd tone shuǎ or 2nd tone shú by beginners who rush the falling pitch.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: A sharp, forceful downward hand chop representing Tone 4, similar to a decisive 'No!' or a quick nod.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 9 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (wood radical) should be narrower and slightly compressed to leave ample room for the complex right-side components.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form 樹 uses 尌 on the right side, which was simplified to 对 (or rather, the phonetic component was streamlined).

4. Components

Radical 木 · Wood Radical (tree, wood, timber)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 木 (Indicates plant or tree related meaning)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 尌 (original sound: shù)

The tree radical (木) on the left provides the meaning of wood/plant, while the right component (尌) provides the pronunciation sound and hints at setting upright.

木 Left semantic wood radical
尌 Right phonetic and structural component

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

3· Phonetic Root: 对 (duì)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally a combination of the tree radical (木) indicating vegetation and 尌 acting as a phonetic indicator that also originally meant to plant or erect upright.

Semantic Evolution: Shifted from the physical woody plant itself to also encompass abstract verbs of 'setting up' or 'establishing' structures and reputations.

In ancient seal scripts, the structure clearly separated the living tree trunk from the action of planting.

6. Sinosphere

🇻🇳

Sino-Vietnamese

thụ

Corresponds to the Vietnamese nặng tone or smooth falling patterns depending on dialect origin.

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: ジュ / Kun: き

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

수

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Imagine a tall WOODEN (木) post that is being SHOT (shù) straight up into the ground to build a brand new treehouse.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

对

duìcorrect, rightUses the right-hand component without the tree radical.

树

shùtreeCombines wood radical with the phonetic right side.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

对(duì)

Missing the wood radical (木) on the left side.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

公园里有很多高大的[___]。

Clue: shù

Common Learner Pitfall

Forgetting the retroflex initial 'sh' and pronouncing it like a plain English 's' or 'shu' without curling the tongue.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: What is the English meaning of 树 and how is its 4th tone pronounced?

Production: How do you write the Chinese character for 'tree' (shù) and what radical does it use?

树shùtree

Speed:

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