烛 (zhú) is a Chinese character meaning “candle”. It is written from 火 (fire) and 虫 (insect; bug; worm), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “candle”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
火 + 虫
Left–right structure
Structure from: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：现代简化字形拆为 ⿰火虫（4+6=10 画）
Memory aid
Fire (火) on the left, a bug (虫) on the right — moths and insects fly toward the flame of a candle. Both parts are really in this character: 烛, candle.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 蜡烛là zhúcandle烛 = zhú
- 烛光zhú guāngcandlelight烛 = zhú
Go deeper
All readings
candle
candle; to illuminate; to see clearly
蜡烛；也指照亮、洞察。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 蜡烛là zhúcandle烛 = zhú
- 烛光zhú guāngcandlelight烛 = zhú
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 烛 mean?
烛 (zhú) means candle; to illuminate; to see clearly.
How do you pronounce 烛?
It is pronounced zhú.
What parts is 烛 made of?
火 (fire) and 虫 (insect; bug; worm), side by side. The recorded source is: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：现代简化字形拆为 ⿰火虫（4+6=10 画）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 烛 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 烛?
火. 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 烛?
Common ones are 蜡烛 and 烛光. The reading of 烛 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.