姊 (zǐ) is a Chinese character meaning “elder sister (formal/literary”. It is written from 女 (woman; female) and 𠂔 (the right-hand part of 姊; a sound-carrying component that is not used on its own), side by side, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “elder sister”
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Structure
女 + 𠂔
Left–right structure
- 女 woman; female · nǚ meaning
- 𠂔 the right-hand part of 姊; a sound-carrying component that is not used on its own sound
Structure from: 说文解字：姊，女兄也。从女，𠂔聲。
Memory aid
A woman (女) on the left, and 𠂔 on the right carrying the sound. The woman who came first in the family — the elder sister.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 姊妹zǐ mèisisters姊 = zǐ
Go deeper
All readings
elder sister
elder sister (formal/literary; the everyday word is 姐)
姐姐（书面语）。多用在「姊妹」等词里。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 姊妹zǐ mèisisters姊 = zǐ
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 姊 mean?
姊 (zǐ) means elder sister (formal/literary; the everyday word is 姐).
How do you pronounce 姊?
It is pronounced zǐ.
What parts is 姊 made of?
女 (woman; female) and 𠂔 (the right-hand part of 姊; a sound-carrying component that is not used on its own), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字：姊，女兄也。从女，𠂔聲。. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 姊 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 姊?
女. 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 姊?
Common ones are 姊妹. The reading of 姊 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.