手 (shǒu) means "hand" with 4 strokes, radical 手 (hand), HSK 1 on the new exam.
Pronunciation
Meaning
Primary: hand
Etymology
Oracle-bone origin
手 is a clear pictograph of a human hand with the fingers spread. Oracle bone and early bronze forms show five digits radiating from a central palm and wrist, often with the middle finger drawn longer than the others. The character depicts the hand viewed from the back, palm away from the viewer.
Form evolution
Bronze inscriptions regularised the five fingers into three short strokes above a vertical wrist line. Small seal script stylised these into the curved, symmetrical form 手 that is still recognisable today. Clerical script straightened the curves into the familiar four-stroke block, and the 楷書 form has remained stable since the Han dynasty.
How the meaning evolved
The original meaning of hand has been preserved continuously for more than three thousand years with no major semantic shift. Extensions cover the person who does something with their hands (歌手 singer, 選手 athlete), skill or technique (手藝), and small handheld objects (手機 mobile phone). As a radical it appears in its full form 手 or the reduced left-hand form 扌, marking hundreds of verbs involving manual action.
Cultural note
The idiom 得心應手 (the heart conceives it and the hand answers) captures the Chinese ideal of mastery as unity between intention and bodily skill. When 手 is used as a left-hand radical it takes the compressed form 扌, which is why 打, 找 and 拿 all share the same semantic root even though it is not immediately obvious.
Mnemonic
Five fingers spread — a hand
Basic info
| Pinyin | shǒu |
| Meanings | hand |
| Stroke count | 4 strokes |
| Radical | 手 (#64: hand) |
| New HSK exam | Recognise at HSK 1 |
| Frequency | #37 most common |
Example sentences
Words containing 手
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 手 | shǒu | hand | HSK 2 |
| 手机 | shǒujī | mobile phone | HSK 1 |
| 手表 | shǒubiǎo | watch | HSK 2 |
| 洗手间 | xǐshǒujiān | Restroom | HSK 2 |
| 对手 | duìshǒu | Opponent | HSK 5 |
| 分手 | fēnshǒu | Break up | HSK 5 |
| 手工 | shǒugōng | manual | HSK 5 |
| 手术 | shǒushù | Operation | HSK 5 |
| 手续 | shǒuxù | procedures | HSK 5 |
| 手套 | shǒutào | glove | HSK 5 |
| 手指 | shǒuzhǐ | finger | HSK 5 |
| 随手 | suíshǒu | Readily | HSK 5 |
| 握手 | wòshǒu | Handshake | HSK 5 |
| 爱不释手 | àibúshìshǒu | love something too much to part with it | HSK 7-9 |
| 把手 | bǎshou | handle, grip | HSK 7-9 |
| 不择手段 | bùzéshǒuduàn | by hook or by crook | |
| 插手 | chāshǒu | to get involved, to meddle | HSK 7-9 |
| 措手不及 | cuòshǒubùjí | to be caught unprepared | HSK 7-9 |
| 动手 | dòngshǒu | to touch, to hit | HSK 5 |
Related characters
On the new HSK 1 exam
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Reviewed by RJ Murray, Founder, HSK Lord.