检 (jiǎn) is a Chinese character meaning “to check”. It is written from 木 (tree; wood) and 佥 (all; everyone (classical); in 俭 it carries the sound), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “to check”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
木 + 佥
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分：检 = 木 + 佥；Unicode U+68C0 radical 75 (木)；hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：0–3 笔为木(4 画)，4–10 笔为佥(7 画)，合计 11 画；说文解字：檢，書署也。从木僉聲。
Memory aid
木 on the left is wood; 佥 on the right means "everyone". Everyone lines up at a wooden counter to have their bags checked.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 检查jiǎn cháto inspect; to examine; a check-up检 = jiǎnHSK 3
- 体检tǐ jiǎnphysical examination; medical check-up检 = jiǎnspoken astí jiǎn
Go deeper
All readings
to check; to inspect
to check; to inspect; to examine; to restrain oneself
查看、查验；也指约束、检点。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 检查jiǎn cháto inspect; to examine; a check-up检 = jiǎnHSK 3
- 体检tǐ jiǎnphysical examination; medical check-up检 = jiǎnspoken astí jiǎn
Origin
A phono-semantic compound: 木 (wood) gives the meaning and 佥 (traditional 僉) supplies the sound. 说文解字 glosses 檢 as "a label on a document" — a wooden seal-tag on a sealed letter. Checking that seal led to the modern sense "to inspect".
Source: 说文解字：檢，書署也。从木僉聲。
Sound component
佥 family
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 检 mean?
检 (jiǎn) means to check; to inspect; to examine; to restrain oneself.
How do you pronounce 检?
It is pronounced jiǎn.
What parts is 检 made of?
木 (tree; wood) and 佥 (all; everyone (classical); in 俭 it carries the sound), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分：检 = 木 + 佥；Unicode U+68C0 radical 75 (木)；hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：0–3 笔为木(4 画)，4–10 笔为佥(7 画)，合计 11 画；说文解字：檢，書署也。从木僉聲。. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 检 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 检?
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 检?
Common ones are 检查 and 体检. The reading of 检 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.