体 (tǐ) is a Chinese character meaning “body”. It is written from 亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 本 (root; base; origin), side by side, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “body”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
亻 + 本
Left–right structure
Structure from: studyhanzi 现代字形拆分（对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：亻2 + 本5 = 7）
Memory aid
A person (亻) standing next to a root (本): the body is the person's own root — what everything else is built on.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 身体shēn tǐbody; health体 = tǐHSK 1
- 团体tuán tǐgroup; organization; team体 = tǐ
- 尸体shī tǐcorpse; dead body体 = tǐ
- 体恤tǐ xùto show consideration for; to feel for someone's hardship体 = tǐ
- 体检tǐ jiǎnphysical examination; medical check-up体 = tǐspoken astí jiǎn
- 体育tǐ yùphysical education; sports体 = tǐHSK 3
- 兹事体大zī shì tǐ dàthis is a matter of great importance体 = tǐ
- 液体yè tǐliquid体 = tǐ
- 肢体zhī tǐlimbs; the limbs and the body体 = tǐ
- 躯体qū tǐthe body (as a physical whole)体 = tǐ
Go deeper
All readings
body
body; form; substance; an organized whole; to experience personally
人或动物的身体；也指事物的整体、形式，或亲身经历。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 身体shēn tǐbody; health体 = tǐHSK 1
- 团体tuán tǐgroup; organization; team体 = tǐ
- 尸体shī tǐcorpse; dead body体 = tǐ
- 体恤tǐ xùto show consideration for; to feel for someone's hardship体 = tǐ
- 体检tǐ jiǎnphysical examination; medical check-up体 = tǐspoken astí jiǎn
- 体育tǐ yùphysical education; sports体 = tǐHSK 3
- 兹事体大zī shì tǐ dàthis is a matter of great importance体 = tǐ
- 液体yè tǐliquid体 = tǐ
- 肢体zhī tǐlimbs; the limbs and the body体 = tǐ
- 躯体qū tǐthe body (as a physical whole)体 = tǐ
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 体 mean?
体 (tǐ) means body; form; substance; an organized whole; to experience personally.
How do you pronounce 体?
It is pronounced tǐ.
What parts is 体 made of?
亻 (person (the form 人 takes on the left)) and 本 (root; base; origin), side by side. The recorded source is: studyhanzi 现代字形拆分（对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：亻2 + 本5 = 7）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 体 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 体?
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 体?
Common ones are 身体 and 团体. The reading of 体 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.