柱 (zhù) is a Chinese character meaning “a pillar, post or column”. It is written from 木 (tree; wood) and 主 (master; owner; host), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “pillar; column”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
木 + 主
Left–right structure
Structure from: studyhanzi 现代字形拆分（对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：4 笔木 + 5 笔主 = 9 笔）
Memory aid
Wood (木) on the left tells you what it is made of; 主 on the right hands you the sound: 主 zhǔ, 柱 zhù. A wooden post holding up the roof — a pillar.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 柱子zhù zǐpillar; post; column柱 = zhùspoken aszhù zi
- 支柱zhī zhùpillar; mainstay; prop柱 = zhù
- 汞柱gǒng zhùmercury column柱 = zhù
Go deeper
All readings
pillar; column
a pillar, post or column; anything shaped like a column
建筑物中直立起支撑作用的构件；也指柱形的东西。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 柱子zhù zǐpillar; post; column柱 = zhùspoken aszhù zi
- 支柱zhī zhùpillar; mainstay; prop柱 = zhù
- 汞柱gǒng zhùmercury column柱 = zhù
Sound component
主 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 柱 mean?
柱 (zhù) means a pillar, post or column; anything shaped like a column.
How do you pronounce 柱?
It is pronounced zhù.
What parts is 柱 made of?
木 (tree; wood) and 主 (master; owner; host), side by side. The recorded source is: studyhanzi 现代字形拆分（对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：4 笔木 + 5 笔主 = 9 笔）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 柱 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 柱?
木. 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 柱?
Common ones are 柱子 and 支柱. The reading of 柱 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.