修 (xiū) is a Chinese character meaning “to repair”. It is written from 攸 (distant, flowing on (literary); the sound part of 修) and 彡 (three slanting strokes (bristles, hair, light or pattern)), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “to repair; to fix up”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
攸 + 彡
Left–right structure
- 攸 distant, flowing on (literary); the sound part of 修 · yōu sound
- 彡 three slanting strokes (bristles, hair, light or pattern) · shān meaning
Structure from: 说文解字：修，飾也。从彡攸聲。
Memory aid
攸 lends 修 its sound, and 彡 — three sweeping strokes of polish — lends the sense. Add the polish to 攸 and you get 修: working on something until it looks right again.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 修改xiū gǎito revise; to amend修 = xiūHSK 4
Go deeper
All readings
to repair; to fix up
to repair; to mend; to build; to revise; to trim; to cultivate (oneself)
把坏了的东西弄好；也指兴建、改动、修剪，以及修养身心。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 修改xiū gǎito revise; to amend修 = xiūHSK 4
Origin
Shuowen Jiezi analyses 修 as 从彡攸聲: 彡, the three decorative strokes, carries the meaning of adorning, while 攸 supplies the sound. The recorded early sense is "to adorn, to groom", which later widened to repairing, building and cultivating oneself.
Source: 说文解字：修，飾也。从彡攸聲。
Sound component
攸 family onset shift
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 修 mean?
修 (xiū) means to repair; to mend; to build; to revise; to trim; to cultivate (oneself).
How do you pronounce 修?
It is pronounced xiū.
What parts is 修 made of?
攸 (distant, flowing on (literary); the sound part of 修) and 彡 (three slanting strokes (bristles, hair, light or pattern)), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字：修，飾也。从彡攸聲。. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 修 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 修?
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 修?
Common ones are 修改. The reading of 修 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.