上 (shàng) is a Chinese character meaning “above”. It takes 3 strokes.
Learn to write “above; up”
Watch the stroke order, then write the character yourself. · 3 strokes
StartLearn this character
Structure
上
Single unit
- 上 above; up · shàng unknown
Structure from: Unicode U+4E0A and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection
Memory aid
The short marks of 上 sit above its long baseline: above or up.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
3 strokes
In real words
- 上班shàng bānto go to work; to be at work上 = shàng
- 上午shàng wǔmorning; before noon上 = shàng
Go deeper
All readings
above; up
above; up; to go up; on or onto
表示位置较高、向上移动，或到某处、在某物之上。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 上班shàng bānto go to work; to be at work上 = shàng
- 上午shàng wǔmorning; before noon上 = shàng
Easy to confuse with
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 上 mean?
上 (shàng) means above; up; to go up; on or onto.
How do you pronounce 上?
It is pronounced shàng.
How many strokes does 上 have?
3. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 上?
一. 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 上?
Common ones are 上班 and 上午. The reading of 上 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.