侦 (zhēn) is a Chinese character meaning “to investigate”. It is written from 亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 贞 (chaste; loyal; to divine (by oracle)), side by side, and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “to investigate”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
亻 + 贞
Left–right structure
- 亻 person (the form 人 takes on the left) · rén meaning
- 贞 chaste; loyal; to divine (by oracle) · zhēn sound
Structure from: 说文解字·人部（偵，問也。从人貞聲）；简化字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 核验：8 画 = 亻 2 画 + 贞 6 画
Memory aid
A person (亻) who keeps asking steady, unwavering (贞) questions until the truth comes out — that is what it means to investigate.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 侦探zhēn tàndetective侦 = zhēn
- 侦察zhēn cháto scout; to reconnoitre侦 = zhēn
Go deeper
All readings
to investigate
to investigate; to scout; to detect (a crime or an enemy's position)
暗中察看、调查，多用于案件或敌情。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 侦探zhēn tàndetective侦 = zhēn
- 侦察zhēn cháto scout; to reconnoitre侦 = zhēn
Sound component
贞 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 侦 mean?
侦 (zhēn) means to investigate; to scout; to detect (a crime or an enemy's position).
How do you pronounce 侦?
It is pronounced zhēn.
What parts is 侦 made of?
亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 贞 (chaste; loyal; to divine (by oracle)), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字·人部（偵，問也。从人貞聲）；简化字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 核验：8 画 = 亻 2 画 + 贞 6 画. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 侦 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 侦?
人. 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 侦?
Common ones are 侦探 and 侦察. The reading of 侦 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.