苛 (kē) is a Chinese character meaning “harsh”. It is written from 艹 (grass / plant radical) and 可 (can; may; approve), one above the other, and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “harsh”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
艹 + 可
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 说文解字·艸部：苛，小艸也。从艸可聲
Memory aid
Grass (艹) sitting on top of 可 "can" — the part that lends the sound kē. Think of someone who says nothing you do is ever good enough: harsh, demanding, picking at every blade of grass.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 苛刻kē kèharsh; demanding苛 = kē
- 苛求kē qiúto make excessive demands苛 = kē
Go deeper
All readings
harsh
harsh; severe; demanding; exacting; petty and oppressive
过于严厉、要求过分；也指繁重烦琐。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 苛刻kē kèharsh; demanding苛 = kē
- 苛求kē qiúto make excessive demands苛 = kē
Sound component
可 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 苛 mean?
苛 (kē) means harsh; severe; demanding; exacting; petty and oppressive.
How do you pronounce 苛?
It is pronounced kē.
What parts is 苛 made of?
艹 (grass / plant radical) and 可 (can; may; approve), one above the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字·艸部：苛，小艸也。从艸可聲. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 苛 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 苛?
艸. 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 苛?
Common ones are 苛刻 and 苛求. The reading of 苛 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.