揭 (jiē) is a Chinese character meaning “to lift off (a cover)”. It is written from 扌 (hand (radical form)) and 曷 (hé — a classical word meaning "why / when"; in 揭 it is the sound component), side by side, and takes 12 strokes.
Build the character for “to uncover”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
扌 + 曷
Left–right structure
- 扌 hand (radical form) · shǒu meaning
- 曷 hé — a classical word meaning "why / when"; in 揭 it is the sound component · hé sound
Structure from: IDS ⿰扌曷 (cjkvi-ids); 说文解字: 揭，高舉也。从手曷聲
Memory aid
A hand (扌) reaches over to 曷 and lifts off the cover — that lifting-off-to-reveal is 揭.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
12 strokes
In real words
- 揭开jiē kāito uncover; to lift the lid off; to reveal揭 = jiē
- 揭露jiē lùto expose; to unmask; to bring to light揭 = jiē
Go deeper
All readings
to uncover; to reveal
to lift off (a cover); to uncover; to expose; to reveal
把盖着或粘着的东西拿开；使隐蔽的事物显露出来。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 揭开jiē kāito uncover; to lift the lid off; to reveal揭 = jiē
- 揭露jiē lùto expose; to unmask; to bring to light揭 = jiē
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 揭 mean?
揭 (jiē) means to lift off (a cover); to uncover; to expose; to reveal.
How do you pronounce 揭?
It is pronounced jiē.
What parts is 揭 made of?
扌 (hand (radical form)) and 曷 (hé — a classical word meaning "why / when"; in 揭 it is the sound component), side by side. The recorded source is: IDS ⿰扌曷 (cjkvi-ids); 说文解字: 揭，高舉也。从手曷聲. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 揭 have?
12. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 揭?
扌. 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 揭?
Common ones are 揭开 and 揭露. The reading of 揭 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.