老 (lǎo) is a Chinese character meaning “old”. It is written from 耂 ("old" top form (老字头) — an elder with long hair leaning on a stick) and 匕 (ancient spoon; dagger), one above the other, and takes 6 strokes.
Build the character for “old”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
耂 + 匕
Top–bottom structure
- 耂 "old" top form (老字头) — an elder with long hair leaning on a stick · lǎo meaning
- 匕 ancient spoon; dagger · bǐ unknown
Structure from: hanzi-writer-data 笔画比对：老 的第1–4 笔与 耂 的四笔逐笔重合，第5–6 笔与 匕 的两笔逐笔重合
Memory aid
耂 on top is long hair over a bent back; 匕 underneath is the walking stick propping the elder up. Both parts are really in this character — put them together and you get old.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
6 strokes
In real words
- 老人lǎo rénan old person; the elderly老 = lǎo
- 老师lǎo shīteacher老 = lǎo
- 古老gǔ lǎoancient; age-old老 = lǎospoken asgú lǎo
- 老乡lǎo xiāngsomeone from the same hometown老 = lǎo
- 老虎lǎo hǔtiger老 = lǎospoken asláo hǔHSK 3
- 啃老kěn lǎoto live off one's parents (as an adult)老 = lǎospoken askén lǎo
- 老婆lǎo pówife (colloquial)老 = lǎospoken aslǎo po
- 老爹lǎo diēdad; old man (affectionate)老 = lǎo
- 老翁lǎowēngold man; elderly gentleman老 = lǎo
- 老赵Lǎo ZhàoOld Zhao (friendly way to address someone surnamed Zhao)老 = lǎo
- 衰老shuāi lǎoto grow old; aging老 = lǎo
Go deeper
All readings
old
old; aged; elderly; long-standing; (prefix used before names and some nouns)
年岁大的；存在时间久的。也用作某些名词前的前缀。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 老人lǎo rénan old person; the elderly老 = lǎo
- 老师lǎo shīteacher老 = lǎo
- 古老gǔ lǎoancient; age-old老 = lǎospoken asgú lǎo
- 老乡lǎo xiāngsomeone from the same hometown老 = lǎo
- 老虎lǎo hǔtiger老 = lǎospoken asláo hǔHSK 3
- 啃老kěn lǎoto live off one's parents (as an adult)老 = lǎospoken askén lǎo
- 老婆lǎo pówife (colloquial)老 = lǎospoken aslǎo po
- 老爹lǎo diēdad; old man (affectionate)老 = lǎo
- 老翁lǎowēngold man; elderly gentleman老 = lǎo
- 老赵Lǎo ZhàoOld Zhao (friendly way to address someone surnamed Zhao)老 = lǎo
- 衰老shuāi lǎoto grow old; aging老 = lǎo
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 老 mean?
老 (lǎo) means old; aged; elderly; long-standing; (prefix used before names and some nouns).
How do you pronounce 老?
It is pronounced lǎo.
What parts is 老 made of?
耂 ("old" top form (老字头) — an elder with long hair leaning on a stick) and 匕 (ancient spoon; dagger), one above the other. The recorded source is: hanzi-writer-data 笔画比对：老 的第1–4 笔与 耂 的四笔逐笔重合，第5–6 笔与 匕 的两笔逐笔重合. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 老 have?
6. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 老?
老. 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 老?
Common ones are 老人 and 老师. The reading of 老 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.