牙 (yá) is a Chinese character meaning “tooth”. It is written from ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇗ (vertical-turning stroke) and ㇚ (vertical stroke with hook) and ㇒ (left-falling stroke), and takes 4 strokes.
Build the character for “tooth”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
㇐ + ㇗ + ㇚ + ㇒
Overlapping structure
- ㇐ horizontal stroke unknown
- ㇗ vertical-turning stroke unknown
- ㇚ vertical stroke with hook unknown
- ㇒ left-falling stroke unknown
Structure from: Unicode U+7259; 现代字形逐笔拆分，依据 hanzi-writer-data 的四笔中线几何核验（横、竖折、竖钩、撇）
Memory aid
A short bar (㇐) on top, a turning stroke (㇗) opening the jaw beneath it, then a long hooked fang (㇚) coming down and a slanting fang (㇒) crossing it — a mouth of teeth (牙).
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
4 strokes
In real words
- 牙齿yá chǐteeth牙 = yá
- 刷牙shuā yáto brush one's teeth牙 = yá
- 拔牙bá yáto pull out a tooth牙 = yá
- 爪牙zhǎo yátalons and fangs; (figuratively) a henchman or lackey牙 = yá
- 咬牙yǎo yáto grit one's teeth; to bear down and endure牙 = yá
- 牙垢yá gòudental plaque; tartar牙 = yá
- 蛀牙zhù yátooth decay; cavity牙 = yá
Go deeper
All readings
tooth
tooth; fang; ivory
牙齿；也指象牙。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 牙齿yá chǐteeth牙 = yá
- 刷牙shuā yáto brush one's teeth牙 = yá
- 拔牙bá yáto pull out a tooth牙 = yá
- 爪牙zhǎo yátalons and fangs; (figuratively) a henchman or lackey牙 = yá
- 咬牙yǎo yáto grit one's teeth; to bear down and endure牙 = yá
- 牙垢yá gòudental plaque; tartar牙 = yá
- 蛀牙zhù yátooth decay; cavity牙 = yá
Easy to confuse with
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 牙 mean?
牙 (yá) means tooth; fang; ivory.
How do you pronounce 牙?
It is pronounced yá.
What parts is 牙 made of?
㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇗ (vertical-turning stroke) and ㇚ (vertical stroke with hook) and ㇒ (left-falling stroke). The recorded source is: Unicode U+7259; 现代字形逐笔拆分，依据 hanzi-writer-data 的四笔中线几何核验（横、竖折、竖钩、撇）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 牙 have?
4. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 牙?
牙. 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 牙?
Common ones are 牙齿 and 刷牙. The reading of 牙 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.