创 (chuàng) is a Chinese character meaning “to create”. It is written from 仓 (storehouse; granary) and 刂 (knife (side form)), side by side, and takes 6 strokes. It has a second reading, chuāng, which turns up in 创伤 — here the two readings are two separate things to learn, not one card with two answers.
Build the character for “to create”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
仓 + 刂
Left–right structure
Structure from: modern-glyph-decomposition (hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验: 仓 4 画 + 刂 2 画 = 6 画)
Memory aid
A granary (仓) with a knife (刂) at its side: you cut open the store of what already exists to shape something new. 创 is to create.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
6 strokes
In real words
- 创造chuàng zàoto create; to bring into being创 = chuàng
- 创新chuàng xīnto innovate; innovation创 = chuàng
Go deeper
All readings
to create
to create; to start something new; to establish for the first time
开始做以前没有的事；首次建立。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 创造chuàng zàoto create; to bring into being创 = chuàng
- 创新chuàng xīnto innovate; innovation创 = chuàng
wound
wound; cut; injury (mostly in compounds such as 创伤)
伤口；受的伤。多用于书面词语，如「创伤」。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 创伤chuāng shāngwound; trauma创 = chuāng
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 创 mean?
创 (chuàng) means to create; to start something new; to establish for the first time.
How do you pronounce 创?
Its main reading is chuàng. It also has a second reading, chuāng, which only shows up in certain words such as 创伤 — so the word tells you the reading, not the character on its own.
Why is 创 sometimes pronounced chuāng?
Because it is a multi-reading character: each reading carries a different sense, and the word decides which one applies. In 创伤 it is read chuāng.
What parts is 创 made of?
仓 (storehouse; granary) and 刂 (knife (side form)), side by side. The recorded source is: modern-glyph-decomposition (hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验: 仓 4 画 + 刂 2 画 = 6 画). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 创 have?
6. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 创?
刀. 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 创?
Common ones are 创造 and 创新. The reading of 创 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.