蛇 (shé) is a Chinese character meaning “snake”. It is written from 虫 (insect; bug; worm) and 它 (it (an animal or thing)), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “snake”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
虫 + 它
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字「它」部：「蛇，它或从虫」；现代字形拆分以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：11 画 = 虫 6 画 + 它 5 画；部首取康熙 142 虫部；声符档位只依据实测现代读音（它 tā / 蛇 shé 已分化）
Memory aid
A creature (虫) on the left, and 它 — "it" — stretched out beside it. What long, crawling "it" do you meet among the creatures? A snake.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 毒蛇dú shévenomous snake蛇 = shé
- 眼镜蛇yǎn jìng shécobra蛇 = shé
Go deeper
All readings
snake
snake; serpent
爬行动物，身体细长，有鳞，没有四肢。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 毒蛇dú shévenomous snake蛇 = shé
- 眼镜蛇yǎn jìng shécobra蛇 = shé
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 蛇 mean?
蛇 (shé) means snake; serpent.
How do you pronounce 蛇?
It is pronounced shé.
What parts is 蛇 made of?
虫 (insect; bug; worm) and 它 (it (an animal or thing)), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字「它」部：「蛇，它或从虫」；现代字形拆分以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：11 画 = 虫 6 画 + 它 5 画；部首取康熙 142 虫部；声符档位只依据实测现代读音（它 tā / 蛇 shé 已分化）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 蛇 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 蛇?
虫. 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 蛇?
Common ones are 毒蛇 and 眼镜蛇. The reading of 蛇 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.