曹 (cáo) is a Chinese character meaning “a surname (Cao)”. It is written from 一 (one) and 曲 (bent; crooked; a tune) and 日 (sun; day), one above the other, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “Cao (surname); group, class”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
一 + 曲 + 日
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: hanzi-writer-data 笔画分组核验（现代字形拆分：上 一[0] 横穿 曲[1-6]，下 日[7-10]）
Memory aid
A long bar (一) laid across a bent frame (曲), with the sun (日) below — picture a row of officials lined up at a bench under the sun, the way 曹 once named a group or office.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 曹操cáo cāoCao Cao (155–220), warlord and statesman of the late Han dynasty曹 = cáo
- 军曹jūn cáosergeant (military rank, esp. in the Japanese army)曹 = cáo
Go deeper
All readings
Cao (surname); group, class
a surname (Cao); (literary) a group or class of people, as in 尔曹 "you people"; a government department in ancient China
姓。旧指辈、类（如「尔曹」）；古代分科办事的官署。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 曹操cáo cāoCao Cao (155–220), warlord and statesman of the late Han dynasty曹 = cáo
- 军曹jūn cáosergeant (military rank, esp. in the Japanese army)曹 = cáo
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 曹 mean?
曹 (cáo) means a surname (Cao); (literary) a group or class of people, as in 尔曹 "you people"; a government department in ancient China.
How do you pronounce 曹?
It is pronounced cáo.
What parts is 曹 made of?
一 (one) and 曲 (bent; crooked; a tune) and 日 (sun; day), one above the other. The recorded source is: hanzi-writer-data 笔画分组核验（现代字形拆分：上 一[0] 横穿 曲[1-6]，下 日[7-10]）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 曹 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 曹?
曰. 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 曹?
Common ones are 曹操 and 军曹. The reading of 曹 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.