贺 (hè) is a Chinese character meaning “to congratulate”. It is written from 加 (to add; to increase) and 贝 (shell), one above the other, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “to congratulate”
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Structure
加 + 贝
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 说文解字: 賀，以禮相奉慶也。从貝加聲
Memory aid
Add (加) a shell (贝) — old money — as a gift on top of your good wishes: that is how you congratulate someone.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 祝贺zhù hèto congratulate; congratulations贺 = hè
- 贺卡hè kǎgreeting card贺 = hè
Go deeper
All readings
to congratulate
to congratulate; to send greetings or gifts on a happy occasion
庆贺；向人道喜或送礼表示祝贺。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 祝贺zhù hèto congratulate; congratulations贺 = hè
- 贺卡hè kǎgreeting card贺 = hè
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 贺 mean?
贺 (hè) means to congratulate; to send greetings or gifts on a happy occasion.
How do you pronounce 贺?
It is pronounced hè.
What parts is 贺 made of?
加 (to add; to increase) and 贝 (shell), one above the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字: 賀，以禮相奉慶也。从貝加聲. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 贺 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 贺?
贝. 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 贺?
Common ones are 祝贺 and 贺卡. The reading of 贺 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.