伐 (fá) is a Chinese character meaning “to fell (a tree)”. It is written from 亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 戈 (dagger-axe (ancient pole weapon); Kangxi radical 62), side by side, and takes 6 strokes.
Build the character for “to fell; to cut down”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
亻 + 戈
Left–right structure
- 亻 person (the form 人 takes on the left) · rén meaning
- 戈 dagger-axe (ancient pole weapon); Kangxi radical 62 · gē meaning
Structure from: 说文解字（伐，擊也。从人持戈）
Memory aid
A person (亻) standing next to a dagger-axe (戈): they raise the blade and strike — to cut down, to fell.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
6 strokes
In real words
- 砍伐kǎn fáto fell trees; to cut down (timber); logging伐 = fá
- 伐木fá mùto fell trees; to log伐 = fá
Go deeper
All readings
to fell; to cut down
to fell (a tree); to cut down; to attack; to send an army against
砍（树）；也指出兵攻打。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 砍伐kǎn fáto fell trees; to cut down (timber); logging伐 = fá
- 伐木fá mùto fell trees; to log伐 = fá
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 伐 mean?
伐 (fá) means to fell (a tree); to cut down; to attack; to send an army against.
How do you pronounce 伐?
It is pronounced fá.
What parts is 伐 made of?
亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 戈 (dagger-axe (ancient pole weapon); Kangxi radical 62), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字（伐，擊也。从人持戈）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 伐 have?
6. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 伐?
亻. 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 伐?
Common ones are 砍伐 and 伐木. The reading of 伐 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.