驱 (qū) is a Chinese character meaning “to drive (forward)”. It is written from 马 (horse) and 区 (area, district), side by side, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “to drive forward”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
马 + 区
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字（驅，馬馳也。从馬區聲）
Memory aid
A horse (马) breaking out of a walled district (区) and running off — that is 驱: to drive something forward, to send it running. 区 also carries the sound: qū.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 驱动qū dòngto drive; to power驱 = qū
- 驱车qū chēto drive a vehicle驱 = qū
Go deeper
All readings
to drive
to drive (forward); to urge on; to expel; to power or run a machine
赶着牲口或车辆前进；把人或事物赶走；也指推动机器运转。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 驱动qū dòngto drive; to power驱 = qū
- 驱车qū chēto drive a vehicle驱 = qū
Sound component
区 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 驱 mean?
驱 (qū) means to drive (forward); to urge on; to expel; to power or run a machine.
How do you pronounce 驱?
It is pronounced qū.
What parts is 驱 made of?
马 (horse) and 区 (area, district), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字（驅，馬馳也。从馬區聲）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 驱 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 驱?
马. 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 驱?
Common ones are 驱动 and 驱车. The reading of 驱 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.