四 (sì) is a Chinese character meaning “four”. It is written from 囗 (enclosure, surrounding frame) and 儿 (child; legs), one enclosing the other, and takes 5 strokes.
Build the character for “four”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
囗 + 儿
Enclosing structure
Structure from: modern-glyph decomposition (IDS ⿴囗儿; stroke count checked against hanzi-writer-data: 囗 3 + 儿 2 = 四 5)
Memory aid
A closed frame (囗) with a pair of little legs (儿) standing inside it. Four walls around, and the number four is boxed in.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
5 strokes
In real words
- 四月sì yuèApril; the fourth month四 = sì
- 四川sì chuānSichuan四 = sì
- 四处sì chùeverywhere; in all directions四 = sì
- 四肢sì zhīthe four limbs; arms and legs四 = sì
Go deeper
All readings
four
four; 4; fourth
数目，三加一的和；4。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 四月sì yuèApril; the fourth month四 = sì
- 四川sì chuānSichuan四 = sì
- 四处sì chùeverywhere; in all directions四 = sì
- 四肢sì zhīthe four limbs; arms and legs四 = sì
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 四 mean?
四 (sì) means four; 4; fourth.
How do you pronounce 四?
It is pronounced sì.
What parts is 四 made of?
囗 (enclosure, surrounding frame) and 儿 (child; legs), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: modern-glyph decomposition (IDS ⿴囗儿; stroke count checked against hanzi-writer-data: 囗 3 + 儿 2 = 四 5). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 四 have?
5. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 四?
囗. 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 四?
Common ones are 四月 and 四川. The reading of 四 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.