What does 去 mean in Chinese?

去 (qù) means "to go" in Chinese. The new HSK exam expects you to recognise it at HSK 1.

How do you write 去?

去 is written with 5 strokes, starting from the 厶 (private) radical and following standard Chinese stroke order (top to bottom, left to right). See the interactive stroke-order tool for the full animation.

What is the radical of 去?

The radical of 去 is 厶 (private, Kangxi radical #28). Other common HSK characters using the same radical include 厶.

How many strokes does 去 have?

The Chinese character 去 has 5 strokes.

What HSK level is 去?

On the new HSK exam syllabus, 去 is a character to recognise at HSK 1 and to write by hand at HSK 2 (the handwriting list HSK 1 and 2 share).

去 (qù): Meaning, Stroke Order, Radical & Examples

去

qù

to go

HSK 1 character 5 strokes Radical: 厶 (private)

Quick Answer

去 (qù) means "to go" with 5 strokes, radical 厶 (private), HSK 1 on the new exam.

Full dictionary entry for 去 →Animated stroke-order for 去 →

Pronunciation

qù

Meaning

Primary: to go

Etymology

Oracle-bone origin

Oracle bone 去 shows a person (大) above an opening, often read as a pit, a vessel, or the mouth of a dwelling. The image is of someone leaving an enclosed space, walking away from a place. Some scholars read the lower element as 凵 (an open container) and interpret the whole as departing from a hollow.

Form evolution

Bronze forms keep the 大-over-opening structure clearly. Seal script (篆书) stylised the upper human figure into a rounded shape and the lower opening into a small enclosed form. Clerical script (隶书) flattened the top into 土-like strokes, and 楷书 finalised the modern form where the top no longer resembles a person and the bottom is written as 厶.

How the meaning evolved

The original sense of leaving or departing from a place is still the core meaning, as in 去北京 (go to Beijing, literally depart toward Beijing). It extended to mean remove or get rid of, as in 去掉 (take off, remove), and in classical Chinese often meant the past, surviving in 过去 (the past) and 去年 (last year).

Cultural note

Learners often assume 去 means only go to, but in classical usage it more precisely meant go away from, which is why 去年 means last year (the year that has departed) rather than the year one is going toward.