秒 (miǎo) is a Chinese character meaning “second (unit of time)”. It is written from 禾 (grain; standing grain) and 少 (few; little), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “second (of time)”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
禾 + 少
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字: 秒，禾芒也。从禾少聲（现代字形对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：禾 5 画 + 少 4 画 = 9 画）
Memory aid
A stalk of grain (禾) beside few (少): the tiniest sliver of the harvest — and the tiniest sliver of an hour, one second.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 秒钟miǎo zhōngsecond (of time)秒 = miǎo
- 分秒fēn miǎominutes and seconds; every moment秒 = miǎo
Go deeper
All readings
second
second (unit of time); a very short moment; also a unit of angle or arc
时间单位，一分钟的六十分之一；也用作角度、弧度的单位。引申指极短的时间。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 秒钟miǎo zhōngsecond (of time)秒 = miǎo
- 分秒fēn miǎominutes and seconds; every moment秒 = miǎo
Sound component
少 family diverged
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 秒 mean?
秒 (miǎo) means second (unit of time); a very short moment; also a unit of angle or arc.
How do you pronounce 秒?
It is pronounced miǎo.
What parts is 秒 made of?
禾 (grain; standing grain) and 少 (few; little), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字: 秒，禾芒也。从禾少聲（现代字形对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：禾 5 画 + 少 4 画 = 9 画）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 秒 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 秒?
禾. 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 秒?
Common ones are 秒钟 and 分秒. The reading of 秒 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.