掺 (chān) is a Chinese character meaning “to mix”. It is written from 扌 (hand (radical form)) and 参 (to take part; to join (as a component, often a sound hint)), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “to mix; to blend in”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
扌 + 参
Left–right structure
- 扌 hand (radical form) · shǒu meaning
- 参 to take part; to join (as a component, often a sound hint) · cān sound
Structure from: 说文解字（摻，斂也。从手參聲）；现代简化字形 ⿰扌参
Memory aid
A hand (扌) stirs something extra into the mix (参) — that is 掺: to blend one thing into another.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 掺杂chān záto mix in; to mingle; to be mixed with掺 = chān
- 掺假chān jiǎto adulterate; to mix in fake or inferior material掺 = chān
Go deeper
All readings
to mix; to blend in
to mix; to mingle; to blend one thing into another (often something inferior)
把一种东西混合到另一种东西里。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 掺杂chān záto mix in; to mingle; to be mixed with掺 = chān
- 掺假chān jiǎto adulterate; to mix in fake or inferior material掺 = chān
Rare readings, not taught: càn, shǎn
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 掺 mean?
掺 (chān) means to mix; to mingle; to blend one thing into another (often something inferior).
How do you pronounce 掺?
It is pronounced chān.
What parts is 掺 made of?
扌 (hand (radical form)) and 参 (to take part; to join (as a component, often a sound hint)), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字（摻，斂也。从手參聲）；现代简化字形 ⿰扌参. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 掺 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 掺?
手. 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 掺?
Common ones are 掺杂 and 掺假. The reading of 掺 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.