鱼 (yú) is a Chinese character meaning “fish”. It is written from ⺈ (claw-top form; the flattened top of 刀 seen in 争, 色, 龟) and 田 (field; farmland) and 一 (one), and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “fish”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
⺈ + 田 + 一
Top–middle–bottom structure
- ⺈ claw-top form; the flattened top of 刀 seen in 争, 色, 龟 unknown
- 田 field; farmland · tián unknown
- 一 one · yī unknown
Structure from: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（现代字形拆分：⺈ 2 画在上，田 5 画在中，一 1 画在下，合计 8 画）
Memory aid
A pointed head (⺈) above a scaled body (田), resting on one flat line of water (一). All three parts are really in this character — that is a fish. (Memory aid, not the historical origin.)
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 金鱼jīn yúgoldfish鱼 = yú
- 钓鱼diào yúto fish; to go fishing鱼 = yúHSK 3
- 鱼卵yú luǎnfish eggs; roe; spawn鱼 = yú
- 鱼缸yú gāngfish tank; fishbowl鱼 = yú
- 鱼钩yú gōufishhook鱼 = yú
- 鱼饵yú ěrfish bait鱼 = yú
Go deeper
All readings
fish
fish
生活在水里的脊椎动物，用鳃呼吸，用鳍游动，身上多有鳞。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 金鱼jīn yúgoldfish鱼 = yú
- 钓鱼diào yúto fish; to go fishing鱼 = yúHSK 3
- 鱼卵yú luǎnfish eggs; roe; spawn鱼 = yú
- 鱼缸yú gāngfish tank; fishbowl鱼 = yú
- 鱼钩yú gōufishhook鱼 = yú
- 鱼饵yú ěrfish bait鱼 = yú
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 鱼 mean?
鱼 (yú) means fish.
How do you pronounce 鱼?
It is pronounced yú.
What parts is 鱼 made of?
⺈ (claw-top form; the flattened top of 刀 seen in 争, 色, 龟) and 田 (field; farmland) and 一 (one). The recorded source is: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（现代字形拆分：⺈ 2 画在上，田 5 画在中，一 1 画在下，合计 8 画）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 鱼 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 鱼?
鱼. 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 鱼?
Common ones are 金鱼 and 钓鱼. The reading of 鱼 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.