习 (xí) is a Chinese character meaning “to practice”. It is written from ㇆ and 冫 (ice; two dots of ice), one enclosing the other, and takes 3 strokes.
Build the character for “to practice”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
㇆ + 冫
Enclosing structure
Structure from: Unicode U+4E60 and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection
Memory aid
A horizontal-turning hook (㇆) opens like a wing, and two short strokes (冫) sit inside it — repeat that small movement again and again, and it becomes 习, "to practice."
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
3 strokes
In real words
- 学习xué xíto study; to learn习 = xíHSK 1
- 练习liàn xíto practice; exercise (drill)习 = xíHSK 3
- 补习bǔ xíto take supplementary lessons习 = xíHSK 5
- 习惯xí guànhabit; to be used to习 = xí
- 复习fù xíto review; to revise (lessons)习 = xí
Go deeper
All readings
to practice
to practice; to study; to be used to; habit
反复地学、反复地做，使之熟练；也指长期养成的行为方式。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 学习xué xíto study; to learn习 = xíHSK 1
- 练习liàn xíto practice; exercise (drill)习 = xíHSK 3
- 补习bǔ xíto take supplementary lessons习 = xíHSK 5
- 习惯xí guànhabit; to be used to习 = xí
- 复习fù xíto review; to revise (lessons)习 = xí
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 习 mean?
习 (xí) means to practice; to study; to be used to; habit.
How do you pronounce 习?
It is pronounced xí.
What parts is 习 made of?
㇆ and 冫 (ice; two dots of ice), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: Unicode U+4E60 and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 习 have?
3. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 习?
乙. 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 习?
Common ones are 学习 and 练习. The reading of 习 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.