竖 (shù) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

竖

shù[shu4]Tone 4

vertical

HSK 7

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豎

Multiple Readings (多音字):

Guru Deep Dive

English · vertical

Cached lesson

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Topology:Top-bottom

Strokes:9

Writing Balance Rule: Ensure the upper component (臣) is compact and balanced, while the bottom component (立) anchors the character securely with a wide base.

1. Meaning

to erect, vertical, vertical stroke in Chinese characters

servantattendant

verb, adjective, nounNeutral#geometry#calligraphy#actions

Sample Usage

请把这根竹竿竖起来。
Qǐng bǎ zhè gēn zhúgān shù qǐ lái.
Please erect this bamboo pole.
汉字的基本笔画包括横、竖、撇、捺。
Hànzì de jīběn bǐhuà bāokuò héng, shù, piě, nà.
The basic strokes of Chinese characters include horizontal, vertical, left-falling, and right-falling.

2. Sound

/[ʂu⁵¹]/Tone: 51

竖

shùshu4

`(51)

=shù

Build the syllable

Step-by-step blending

shu

Tone mark placement: Tone mark sits on "u" per main-vowel priority (a > e > o; in -iu/-ui the mark takes the second vowel).

Initial Consonant

Type: Retroflex Fricative

Sounds like: sh (retroflex sh sound like in shoe with tongue curled back)

UnaspiratedRetroflex

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

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip curled back near the hard palate, creating a narrow gap for air to hiss softly without friction explosion.

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 drops sharply to the bottom of your vocal range, like a command or a definitive 'No!'.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the retroflex initial 'sh-' with the dental/alveolar 's-' (su4). Make sure your tongue is curled back for 'shù'.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Tone 4 is a sharp downward slash, like nodding firmly in agreement or stamping your foot down in frustration.

3. Writing

Topology: Top-bottom · Strokes: 9 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: Ensure the upper component (臣) is compact and balanced, while the bottom component (立) anchors the character securely with a wide base.

4. Components

Radical 立 · stand radical (stand, upright)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 立 (indicates standing upright or vertical position)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 臣 (original sound: shén / shù)

A loyal subject or minister (臣) standing (立) tall and straight, ready to serve.

臣 minister / servant phonetic and semantic hint
立 stand upright base

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally combined 臣 (minister/servant) and 立 (standing), originally denoting a low-ranking servant or retainer who stands upright at attention, later extended to mean standing straight or vertical.

Semantic Evolution: From a servant standing at attention to anything that stands erect or vertical, and eventually adopted into calligraphy terminology for a vertical stroke.

In classical Chinese, 竖 frequently referred to domestic servants or pages.
In modern usage, it is universally known as the geometric term for vertical and the calligraphy stroke name.

6. Sinosphere

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: ジュツ (jutsu), シュ (shu) / Kun: たてる (tateru), たて (tate)

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

수

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Imagine a loyal minister (臣) who refuses to slouch, standing (立) completely vertical and erect like a sharp calligraphy stroke.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

树

shùtreeAdded wood radical (木) on the left for trees that stand vertically.

韃

dáTartarDifferent components combined.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

树(shù)

树 has the wood radical (木) because it means tree, whereas 竖 uses 臣 and 立.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

写汉字时，先写横，后写[___]。

Clue: shù

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the tone 4 (shù) with tone 3 or mixing up the top component 臣 with similar looking box structures.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: What does the character 竖 mean, and what is its tone?

Production: How do you write 'vertical / to erect' (shù) in Chinese characters?

竖shùvertical

Speed:

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