肃 (sù) is a Chinese character meaning “solemn”. It is written from 肀 (brush-holding hand (top of 聿)) and ㇒ (left-falling stroke) and ㇑ (vertical stroke) and ㇒ (left-falling stroke) and ㇔ (dot stroke), and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “solemn; respectful”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
肀 + ㇒ + ㇑ + ㇒ + ㇔
Overlapping structure
- 肀 brush-holding hand (top of 聿) · yù unknown
- ㇒ left-falling stroke unknown
- ㇑ vertical stroke unknown
- ㇒ left-falling stroke unknown
- ㇔ dot stroke unknown
Structure from: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（第 1–4 笔与独立字形「肀」的笔顺轨迹逐笔吻合；第 5、7 笔为撇，第 6 笔为竖，第 8 笔为点）
Memory aid
A hand gripping a writing brush (肀) hangs over the page. Beneath it every stroke is set down in strict order: a long sweep to the left (㇒), an upright post on the right (㇑), a shorter sweep inside (㇒) and one careful dot (㇔). Nothing is casual, nothing is out of line — that is what 肃 means: solemn and exact.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 严肃yán sùserious; solemn; grave肃 = sù
- 肃立sù lìto stand at attention in respectful silence肃 = sù
Go deeper
All readings
solemn; respectful
solemn; respectful; serious and strictly in order
恭敬、庄重；严正而不轻慢。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 严肃yán sùserious; solemn; grave肃 = sù
- 肃立sù lìto stand at attention in respectful silence肃 = sù
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 肃 mean?
肃 (sù) means solemn; respectful; serious and strictly in order.
How do you pronounce 肃?
It is pronounced sù.
What parts is 肃 made of?
肀 (brush-holding hand (top of 聿)) and ㇒ (left-falling stroke) and ㇑ (vertical stroke) and ㇒ (left-falling stroke) and ㇔ (dot stroke). The recorded source is: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（第 1–4 笔与独立字形「肀」的笔顺轨迹逐笔吻合；第 5、7 笔为撇，第 6 笔为竖，第 8 笔为点）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 肃 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 肃?
聿. 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 肃?
Common ones are 严肃 and 肃立. The reading of 肃 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.