早 (zǎo) is a Chinese character meaning “early”. It is written from 日 (sun; day) and 十 (ten), one above the other, and takes 6 strokes.
Build the character for “early”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
日 + 十
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分：hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验（日 4 + 十 2 = 6）
Memory aid
The sun (日) already sitting on top of a ten (十) — it is up, but the day's count has barely begun. That is early. Both parts are really in this character.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
6 strokes
In real words
- 早上zǎo shangmorning; in the morning早 = zǎo
- 早安zǎo āngood morning (greeting)早 = zǎo
- 趁早chèn zǎoas early as possible; before it is too late早 = zǎo
Go deeper
All readings
early
early; morning; long ago; already; good morning
时间靠前的；早晨。也表示很久以前或已经发生。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 早上zǎo shangmorning; in the morning早 = zǎo
- 早安zǎo āngood morning (greeting)早 = zǎo
- 趁早chèn zǎoas early as possible; before it is too late早 = zǎo
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 早 mean?
早 (zǎo) means early; morning; long ago; already; good morning.
How do you pronounce 早?
It is pronounced zǎo.
What parts is 早 made of?
日 (sun; day) and 十 (ten), one above the other. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分：hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验（日 4 + 十 2 = 6）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 早 have?
6. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 早?
日. 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 早?
Common ones are 早上 and 早安. The reading of 早 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.