字Study Chinese Characters
可

kě can; may

5 strokes

可 (kě) is a Chinese character meaning “can”. It is written from 丁 (fourth; adult man) and 口 (mouth), one enclosing the other, and takes 5 strokes.

Build the character for “can; may”

Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.

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Learn this character

Structure

丁 + 口

Enclosing structure

  • 丁 fourth heavenly stem; adult male · dīng unknown
  • 口 mouth · kǒu unknown

Structure from: IDS 现代字形拆分 ⿹丁口；与 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验：共 5 笔，第 1 笔横与第 5 笔竖钩属 丁，第 2–4 笔属 口

Memory aid

A long hook (丁) swings down the right side and a mouth (口) tucks in under its shelter — the mouth answers: yes, that can be done.

This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.

Stroke order

5 strokes

In real words

  • 可以kě yǐcan; may; be allowed to可 = kěspoken aské yǐHSK 2
  • 宁可nìng kěwould rather; prefer to可 = kě
  • 可怕kě pàfrightening; terrible可 = kěHSK 3
  • 可怜kě liánpitiful; poor; to pity可 = kě
  • 可惜kě xīit is a pity; unfortunately可 = kě
  • 可笑kě xiàofunny; ridiculous可 = kě
  • 可能kě néngpossible; maybe可 = kě
  • 可谓kě wèione may well say; it can be called可 = kě
Go deeper

All readings

kě main reading

can; may

can; may; to be permitted to; worth doing; but; quite

表示许可或能够；也表示值得，用在动词前，如「可爱」；还可作转折连词，相当于「但是」。 — studyhanzi 编写

Words with this reading

  • 可以kě yǐcan; may; be allowed to可 = kěspoken aské yǐHSK 2
  • 宁可nìng kěwould rather; prefer to可 = kě
  • 可怕kě pàfrightening; terrible可 = kěHSK 3
  • 可怜kě liánpitiful; poor; to pity可 = kě
  • 可惜kě xīit is a pity; unfortunately可 = kě
  • 可笑kě xiàofunny; ridiculous可 = kě
  • 可能kě néngpossible; maybe可 = kě
  • 可谓kě wèione may well say; it can be called可 = kě

Other characters with these parts

丁 → 厅叮宁寸才打灯盯

口 → 中串兄免兑加占古

Easy to confuse with

叮司

Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions

Questions people ask about this character

What does 可 mean?

可 (kě) means can; may; to be permitted to; worth doing; but; quite.

How do you pronounce 可?

It is pronounced kě.

What parts is 可 made of?

丁 (fourth; adult man) and 口 (mouth), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: IDS 现代字形拆分 ⿹丁口；与 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验：共 5 笔，第 1 笔横与第 5 笔竖钩属 丁，第 2–4 笔属 口. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.

How many strokes does 可 have?

5. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.

What is the radical of 可?

口. 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 可?

Common ones are 可以. The reading of 可 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.