械 (xiè) is a Chinese character meaning “tool”. It is written from 木 (tree; wood) and 戒 (to guard against; to give up (a habit)), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “apparatus”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
木 + 戒
Left–right structure
Structure from: hanzi-writer-data 笔画分解核验（前四笔为木，后七笔为戒，⿰木戒）
Memory aid
Wood (木) beside 戒, "to guard against": wooden gear built to keep things under control — tools and apparatus.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 机械jī xièmachinery; mechanical械 = xiè
Go deeper
All readings
apparatus; weapon
tool; apparatus; machinery; weapon
器具、器械；也指武器。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 机械jī xièmachinery; mechanical械 = xiè
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 械 mean?
械 (xiè) means tool; apparatus; machinery; weapon.
How do you pronounce 械?
It is pronounced xiè.
What parts is 械 made of?
木 (tree; wood) and 戒 (to guard against; to give up (a habit)), side by side. The recorded source is: hanzi-writer-data 笔画分解核验（前四笔为木，后七笔为戒，⿰木戒）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 械 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 械?
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 械?
Common ones are 机械. The reading of 械 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.