读 (dú) is a Chinese character meaning “to read”. It is written from 讠 (speech radical) and 卖 (to sell), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “to read”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
讠 + 卖
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分，经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画数据核验（讠2画 + 卖8画 = 读10画；笔画 0–1 为「讠」，笔画 2–9 与「卖」逐笔对应）
Memory aid
Speech (讠) next to a seller (卖): a market vendor reads the price list out loud to shoppers. To read is to give the words a voice.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 读书dú shūto read; to study读 = dúHSK 1
- 阅读yuè dúto read; reading读 = dú
Go deeper
All readings
to read
to read; to read aloud; to study; to attend school
看着文字念出声音，或看文字领会内容；也指上学、学习。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 读书dú shūto read; to study读 = dúHSK 1
- 阅读yuè dúto read; reading读 = dú
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 读 mean?
读 (dú) means to read; to read aloud; to study; to attend school.
How do you pronounce 读?
It is pronounced dú.
What parts is 读 made of?
讠 (speech radical) and 卖 (to sell), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分，经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画数据核验（讠2画 + 卖8画 = 读10画；笔画 0–1 为「讠」，笔画 2–9 与「卖」逐笔对应）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 读 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 读?
讠. 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 读?
Common ones are 读书 and 阅读. The reading of 读 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.