派 (pài) is a Chinese character meaning “a faction, group or school (of thought)”. It is written from 氵 (water (left-side form)) and 𠂢 (the component on the right of 脉 and 派: one long stroke with shorter strokes branching off it), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “faction; school of thought”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
氵 + 𠂢
Left–right structure
- 氵 water (left-side form) · shuǐ meaning
- 𠂢 the component on the right of 脉 and 派: one long stroke with shorter strokes branching off it unknown
Structure from: 现代简化字形拆分（hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：0-2 氵 / 3-8 𠂢）
Memory aid
Water (氵) on the left, and on the right 𠂢 — one long stroke with smaller strokes splitting away from it, like a river breaking into separate branches. Each branch goes its own way: that is a 派, a faction or school.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 派对pài duìparty (social gathering)派 = pài
- 学派xué pàischool of thought; academic school派 = pài
Go deeper
All readings
faction; school; to dispatch
a faction, group or school (of thought); a style or manner; to send or assign someone to do something
从同一来源分出的派别、流派；也表示指派、差遣人去做事。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 派对pài duìparty (social gathering)派 = pài
- 学派xué pàischool of thought; academic school派 = pài
Easy to confuse with
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 派 mean?
派 (pài) means a faction, group or school (of thought); a style or manner; to send or assign someone to do something.
How do you pronounce 派?
It is pronounced pài.
What parts is 派 made of?
氵 (water (left-side form)) and 𠂢 (the component on the right of 脉 and 派: one long stroke with shorter strokes branching off it), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代简化字形拆分（hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：0-2 氵 / 3-8 𠂢）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 派 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 派?
水. 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 派?
Common ones are 派对 and 学派. The reading of 派 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.