础 (chǔ) is a Chinese character meaning “the stone base under a pillar”. It is written from 石 (stone; rock) and 出 (to go out; to come out), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “foundation”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
石 + 出
Left–right structure
Structure from: ids-derived (⿰石出；现代简化字形左为石旁，右为出声；已与 hanzi-writer-data 的 10 画笔顺逐笔核验：第 0–4 画为石，第 5–9 画为出)
Memory aid
A stone (石) on the left: the solid block you set under a pillar. On the right, 出 (chū) lends its sound — chǔ. The stone everything stands on: a foundation, as in 基础.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 基础jī chǔfoundation; basis础 = chǔ
Go deeper
All readings
foundation; base
the stone base under a pillar; by extension, a foundation or basis
垫在房屋柱子下面的石墩；引申为事物的根基。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 基础jī chǔfoundation; basis础 = chǔ
Sound component
出 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 础 mean?
础 (chǔ) means the stone base under a pillar; by extension, a foundation or basis.
How do you pronounce 础?
It is pronounced chǔ.
What parts is 础 made of?
石 (stone; rock) and 出 (to go out; to come out), side by side. The recorded source is: ids-derived (⿰石出；现代简化字形左为石旁，右为出声；已与 hanzi-writer-data 的 10 画笔顺逐笔核验：第 0–4 画为石，第 5–9 画为出). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 础 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 础?
石. 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 础?
Common ones are 基础. The reading of 础 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.