章 (zhāng) is a Chinese character meaning “chapter”. It is written from 立 (to stand; upright) and 早 (early; morning), one above the other, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “chapter”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
立 + 早
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分：hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验（立 5 + 早 6 = 11）
Memory aid
Stand up (立) early (早) and read one more chapter before the day begins. Both parts are really in this character.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 文章wén zhāngarticle; essay; piece of writing章 = zhāng
- 章节zhāng jiéchapters and sections; chapter章 = zhāng
- 勋章xūn zhāngmedal; decoration章 = zhāng
- 宪章xiàn zhāngcharter章 = zhāng
Go deeper
All readings
chapter
chapter; section; piece of writing; rules, regulations; seal, stamp
文字、乐曲中的一个段落；成篇的文字；条理、规程；印章。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 文章wén zhāngarticle; essay; piece of writing章 = zhāng
- 章节zhāng jiéchapters and sections; chapter章 = zhāng
- 勋章xūn zhāngmedal; decoration章 = zhāng
- 宪章xiàn zhāngcharter章 = zhāng
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 章 mean?
章 (zhāng) means chapter; section; piece of writing; rules, regulations; seal, stamp.
How do you pronounce 章?
It is pronounced zhāng.
What parts is 章 made of?
立 (to stand; upright) and 早 (early; morning), one above the other. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分：hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验（立 5 + 早 6 = 11）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 章 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 章?
立. 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 章?
Common ones are 文章 and 章节. The reading of 章 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.