旬 (xún) is a Chinese character meaning “a period of ten days”. It is written from 勹 (wrap) and 日 (sun; day), one enclosing the other, and takes 6 strokes.
Build the character for “a period of ten days”
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StartLearn this character
Structure
勹 + 日
Enclosing structure
Structure from: IDS 现代字形拆分 ⿹勹日；与 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验：共 6 笔，第 1–2 笔属 勹，第 3–6 笔属 日
Memory aid
The wrapping arm (勹) closes around one sun (日): days bundled together into one ten-day block.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
6 strokes
In real words
- 上旬shàng xúnthe first ten days of a month旬 = xún
- 中旬zhōng xúnthe middle ten days of a month旬 = xún
Go deeper
All readings
a period of ten days
a period of ten days; one third of a month (used in 上旬 / 中旬 / 下旬); also a period of ten years of age
十天叫一旬，一个月分上旬、中旬、下旬；也指十岁，多用于说老年人的年纪。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 上旬shàng xúnthe first ten days of a month旬 = xún
- 中旬zhōng xúnthe middle ten days of a month旬 = xún
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 旬 mean?
旬 (xún) means a period of ten days; one third of a month (used in 上旬 / 中旬 / 下旬); also a period of ten years of age.
How do you pronounce 旬?
It is pronounced xún.
What parts is 旬 made of?
勹 (wrap) and 日 (sun; day), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: IDS 现代字形拆分 ⿹勹日；与 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验：共 6 笔，第 1–2 笔属 勹，第 3–6 笔属 日. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 旬 have?
6. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 旬?
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 旬?
Common ones are 上旬 and 中旬. The reading of 旬 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.