利 (lì) is a Chinese character meaning “benefit”. It is written from 禾 (grain; standing grain) and 刂 (knife (side form)), side by side, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “benefit; advantage”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
禾 + 刂
Left–right structure
Structure from: IDS 拆分 ⿰禾刂，并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：全字 7 笔，笔画 0–4 为「禾」（5 笔），笔画 5–6 为「刂」（2 笔）
Memory aid
A knife (刂) at the ripe grain (禾): cut the harvest and you get the gain. Both parts really are in this character.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 顺利shùn lìsmooth; without a hitch利 = lìHSK 4
- 利用lì yòngto use; to make use of利 = lìHSK 4
- 吉利jí lìlucky; auspicious利 = lì
- 利润lì rùnprofit利 = lì
- 利益lì yìbenefit; interest (e.g. of a person or group)利 = lì
- 流利liú lìfluent; smooth (of speech or writing)利 = lì
- 盈利yíng lìprofit; to make a profit利 = lì
- 胜利shèng lìvictory; to win; to triumph利 = lì
Go deeper
All readings
benefit; sharp
benefit; advantage; profit; favourable; sharp
好处、益处；顺当、有好处的；也指刀刃锋利。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 顺利shùn lìsmooth; without a hitch利 = lìHSK 4
- 利用lì yòngto use; to make use of利 = lìHSK 4
- 吉利jí lìlucky; auspicious利 = lì
- 利润lì rùnprofit利 = lì
- 利益lì yìbenefit; interest (e.g. of a person or group)利 = lì
- 流利liú lìfluent; smooth (of speech or writing)利 = lì
- 盈利yíng lìprofit; to make a profit利 = lì
- 胜利shèng lìvictory; to win; to triumph利 = lì
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 利 mean?
利 (lì) means benefit; advantage; profit; favourable; sharp.
How do you pronounce 利?
It is pronounced lì.
What parts is 利 made of?
禾 (grain; standing grain) and 刂 (knife (side form)), side by side. The recorded source is: IDS 拆分 ⿰禾刂，并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：全字 7 笔，笔画 0–4 为「禾」（5 笔），笔画 5–6 为「刂」（2 笔）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 利 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 利?
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 利?
Common ones are 顺利 and 利用. The reading of 利 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.