候 (hòu) is a Chinese character meaning “to wait”. It is written from 亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 𥎦 (right-hand block of 候: the phonetic 侯 with its 亻 reduced to a single vertical stroke), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “to wait; season”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
亻 + 𥎦
Left–right structure
- 亻 person (the form 人 takes on the left) · rén meaning
- 𥎦 right-hand block of 候: the phonetic 侯 with its 亻 reduced to a single vertical stroke sound
Structure from: 说文解字：候，伺望也。从人，侯声 (Kangxi radical 人部 +8). Modern glyph checked against hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 ten-stroke data: strokes 1-2 form 亻, strokes 3-10 form the right block 𥎦 (the 侯 phonetic whose 亻 is reduced to a vertical stroke)
Memory aid
A person (亻) stands beside the tall block 𥎦, waiting for the right moment. 候 means to wait — and also a time or season.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 时候shí houtime; moment; (the time) when候 = hòu
- 气候qì hòuclimate候 = hòu
- 等候děng hòuto wait for; to await候 = hòu
- 侍候shì hòuto wait upon; to look after (a person)候 = hòu
Go deeper
All readings
to wait; season
to wait; to wait upon; to inquire after; time, season; condition, state
等待；问候、伺候；时节、时令；情况、状态。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 时候shí houtime; moment; (the time) when候 = hòu
- 气候qì hòuclimate候 = hòu
- 等候děng hòuto wait for; to await候 = hòu
- 侍候shì hòuto wait upon; to look after (a person)候 = hòu
Easy to confuse with
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 候 mean?
候 (hòu) means to wait; to wait upon; to inquire after; time, season; condition, state.
How do you pronounce 候?
It is pronounced hòu.
What parts is 候 made of?
亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 𥎦 (right-hand block of 候: the phonetic 侯 with its 亻 reduced to a single vertical stroke), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字：候，伺望也。从人，侯声 (Kangxi radical 人部 +8). Modern glyph checked against hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 ten-stroke data: strokes 1-2 form 亻, strokes 3-10 form the right block 𥎦 (the 侯 phonetic whose 亻 is reduced to a vertical stroke). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 候 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 候?
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 候?
Common ones are 时候, 气候, 等候. The reading of 候 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.