乃 (nǎi) is a Chinese character meaning “thus”. It takes 2 strokes.
Learn to write “thus; only then”
Watch the stroke order, then write the character yourself. · 2 strokes
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Structure
乃
Single unit
- 乃 thus; only then · nǎi unknown
Structure from: Unicode U+4E43 and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection
Memory aid
Trace the two strokes of 乃 and remember its meaning: thus or only then.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
2 strokes
In real words
- 乃至nǎi zhìand even; up to乃 = nǎi
- 乃是nǎi shìis; indeed is乃 = nǎi
Go deeper
All readings
thus; only then
thus; therefore; only then; to be
表示于是、因此，也可表示“才”或判断，相当于“是”。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 乃至nǎi zhìand even; up to乃 = nǎi
- 乃是nǎi shìis; indeed is乃 = nǎi
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 乃 mean?
乃 (nǎi) means thus; therefore; only then; to be.
How do you pronounce 乃?
It is pronounced nǎi.
How many strokes does 乃 have?
2. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 乃?
丿. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 乃?
Common ones are 乃至 and 乃是. The reading of 乃 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.