君 (jūn) is a Chinese character meaning “ruler”. It is written from 尹 (to govern; an official (as a standalone character, yǐn)) and 口 (mouth), one above the other, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “ruler; monarch”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
尹 + 口
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 说文解字·口部：「君，尊也。从尹發號，故从口。」
Memory aid
The hand that governs (尹) sits above a mouth (口): the one who gives the orders out loud is the ruler.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 君子jūn zǐa person of noble character; gentleman君 = jūn
- 国君guó jūnthe ruler of a state; monarch君 = jūn
Go deeper
All readings
ruler; monarch
ruler; monarch; sovereign; (in classical usage) a person of noble character
君主；国家的统治者。也指品德高尚的人。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 君子jūn zǐa person of noble character; gentleman君 = jūn
- 国君guó jūnthe ruler of a state; monarch君 = jūn
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 君 mean?
君 (jūn) means ruler; monarch; sovereign; (in classical usage) a person of noble character.
How do you pronounce 君?
It is pronounced jūn.
What parts is 君 made of?
尹 (to govern; an official (as a standalone character, yǐn)) and 口 (mouth), one above the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字·口部：「君，尊也。从尹發號，故从口。」. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 君 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 君?
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 君?
Common ones are 君子 and 国君. The reading of 君 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.