植 (zhí) is a Chinese character meaning “to plant”. It is written from 木 (tree; wood) and 直 (straight; upright), side by side, and takes 12 strokes.
Build the character for “to plant”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
木 + 直
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字：植，户植也。从木直声；现代字形拆分（对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：木 4 画 + 直 8 画 = 12 画）
Memory aid
Stand a young tree (木) up straight (直) in the soil — that is planting.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
12 strokes
In real words
- 植物zhí wùplant; flora植 = zhí
- 种植zhòng zhíto plant; to grow (crops)植 = zhí
- 植株zhí zhūplant (as a whole individual)植 = zhí
Go deeper
All readings
to plant
to plant; to grow; to set up; plant (vegetation)
栽种；树立。也指植物。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 植物zhí wùplant; flora植 = zhí
- 种植zhòng zhíto plant; to grow (crops)植 = zhí
- 植株zhí zhūplant (as a whole individual)植 = zhí
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 植 mean?
植 (zhí) means to plant; to grow; to set up; plant (vegetation).
How do you pronounce 植?
It is pronounced zhí.
What parts is 植 made of?
木 (tree; wood) and 直 (straight; upright), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字：植，户植也。从木直声；现代字形拆分（对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：木 4 画 + 直 8 画 = 12 画）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 植 have?
12. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 植?
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 植?
Common ones are 植物, 种植, 植株. The reading of 植 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.