牺 (xī) is a Chinese character meaning “sacrificial animal (in ancient rites)”. It is written from 牛 (ox; cow) and 西 (west), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “sacrifice”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
牛 + 西
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字·牛部：犧，宗廟之牲也。从牛羲聲。《简化字总表》简作「牺」，以同音的「西」代「羲」为声旁。
Memory aid
An ox (牛) squeezed onto the left: the animal offered up. On the right, 西 gives the sound — 西 xī, so 牺 xī.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 牺牲xī shēngto sacrifice; to give up (one’s life or interests)牺 = xī
Go deeper
All readings
sacrifice
sacrificial animal (in ancient rites); to sacrifice; to give up
古代祭祀用的纯色牲畜；现多用于「牺牲」，指为了某种目的舍弃生命或利益。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 牺牲xī shēngto sacrifice; to give up (one’s life or interests)牺 = xī
Sound component
西 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 牺 mean?
牺 (xī) means sacrificial animal (in ancient rites); to sacrifice; to give up.
How do you pronounce 牺?
It is pronounced xī.
What parts is 牺 made of?
牛 (ox; cow) and 西 (west), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字·牛部：犧，宗廟之牲也。从牛羲聲。《简化字总表》简作「牺」，以同音的「西」代「羲」为声旁。. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 牺 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 牺?
牛. 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 牺?
Common ones are 牺牲. The reading of 牺 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.