平 (píng) is a Chinese character meaning “flat”. It is written from 干 (dry) and 丷 (two spreading strokes), and takes 5 strokes.
Build the character for “flat; level”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
干 + 丷
Overlapping structure
Structure from: Unicode U+5E73 and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection (strokes 1/4/5 trace 干, strokes 2/3 trace 丷)
Memory aid
A pole (干) stands upright with its long crossbar. Two small strokes (丷) hang one on each side, exactly balanced — nothing tips, everything is level: 平.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
5 strokes
In real words
- 平安píng ānsafe and sound平 = píng
- 平凡píng fánordinary; commonplace平 = píng
- 和平hé píngpeace平 = píngHSK 4
- 夷平yí píngto raze to the ground; to level平 = píng
- 平均píng jūnaverage; evenly平 = píng
- 平坦píng tǎnflat; level; even (of ground or a road)平 = píng
- 邓小平dèng xiǎo píngDeng Xiaoping (1904–1997), Chinese leader平 = píng
- 和平鸽hé píng gēdove of peace平 = píng
- 平庸píng yōngmediocre; ordinary平 = píng
- 扁平biǎn píngflat平 = píng
Go deeper
All readings
flat; level
flat; level; even; calm; peaceful; equal
表面没有高低起伏，不倾斜；也指安定、公平、不相上下。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 平安píng ānsafe and sound平 = píng
- 平凡píng fánordinary; commonplace平 = píng
- 和平hé píngpeace平 = píngHSK 4
- 夷平yí píngto raze to the ground; to level平 = píng
- 平均píng jūnaverage; evenly平 = píng
- 平坦píng tǎnflat; level; even (of ground or a road)平 = píng
- 邓小平dèng xiǎo píngDeng Xiaoping (1904–1997), Chinese leader平 = píng
- 和平鸽hé píng gēdove of peace平 = píng
- 平庸píng yōngmediocre; ordinary平 = píng
- 扁平biǎn píngflat平 = píng
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 平 mean?
平 (píng) means flat; level; even; calm; peaceful; equal.
How do you pronounce 平?
It is pronounced píng.
What parts is 平 made of?
干 (dry) and 丷 (two spreading strokes). The recorded source is: Unicode U+5E73 and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection (strokes 1/4/5 trace 干, strokes 2/3 trace 丷). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 平 have?
5. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 平?
干. 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 平?
Common ones are 平安 and 平凡. The reading of 平 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.