兵 (bīng) is a Chinese character meaning “soldier”. It is written from 丘 (hill; mound) and 八 (eight), one above the other, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “soldier”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
丘 + 八
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: modern glyph shape only (IDS ⿱丘八; 5+2=7 strokes verified against hanzi-writer-data stroke order)
Memory aid
A hill (丘) with two legs (八) planted under it: the soldier who holds the high ground. Both parts are really in this character, but this is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 士兵shì bīngsoldier兵 = bīng
- 屯兵tún bīngto station troops兵 = bīng
- 兵役bīng yìmilitary service; conscription兵 = bīng
- 哨兵shào bīngsentry; sentinel兵 = bīng
Go deeper
All readings
soldier
soldier; troops; the military; weapons of war
军人；军队。也指兵器、武器。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 士兵shì bīngsoldier兵 = bīng
- 屯兵tún bīngto station troops兵 = bīng
- 兵役bīng yìmilitary service; conscription兵 = bīng
- 哨兵shào bīngsentry; sentinel兵 = bīng
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 兵 mean?
兵 (bīng) means soldier; troops; the military; weapons of war.
How do you pronounce 兵?
It is pronounced bīng.
What parts is 兵 made of?
丘 (hill; mound) and 八 (eight), one above the other. The recorded source is: modern glyph shape only (IDS ⿱丘八; 5+2=7 strokes verified against hanzi-writer-data stroke order). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 兵 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 兵?
八. 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 兵?
Common ones are 士兵 and 屯兵. The reading of 兵 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.