侵 (qīn) is a Chinese character meaning “to invade”. It is written from 亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 彐 (snout radical; a three-stroke block closed on the right) and 冖 (cover) and 又 (again), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “to invade”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
亻 + 彐 + 冖 + 又
Left–right structure
- 亻 person (the form 人 takes on the left) · rén meaning
- 彐 snout radical; a three-stroke block closed on the right · jì unknown
- 冖 cover · mì unknown
- 又 again · yòu unknown
Structure from: 现代字形拆分（逐笔对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验）
Memory aid
A person (亻) slips into someone else's space: a hand (彐) lifts the roof cover (冖) while another hand (又) reaches in underneath. That is 侵 — to encroach, step by step.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 入侵rù qīnto invade; to intrude (also of a computer network)侵 = qīn
- 侵犯qīn fànto infringe on; to violate (rights, territory)侵 = qīn
- 侵蚀qīn shíto erode; erosion侵 = qīn
Go deeper
All readings
to invade
to invade; to encroach on; to infringe upon
一点一点地进入或占据别人的地方、权利；侵入、侵犯。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 入侵rù qīnto invade; to intrude (also of a computer network)侵 = qīn
- 侵犯qīn fànto infringe on; to violate (rights, territory)侵 = qīn
- 侵蚀qīn shíto erode; erosion侵 = qīn
Easy to confuse with
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 侵 mean?
侵 (qīn) means to invade; to encroach on; to infringe upon.
How do you pronounce 侵?
It is pronounced qīn.
What parts is 侵 made of?
亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 彐 (snout radical; a three-stroke block closed on the right) and 冖 (cover) and 又 (again), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分（逐笔对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 侵 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 侵?
亻. 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 侵?
Common ones are 入侵 and 侵犯. The reading of 侵 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.