核 (hé) is a Chinese character meaning “pit or stone of a fruit”. It is written from 木 (tree; wood) and 亥 (the twelfth Earthly Branch), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “pit; core”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
木 + 亥
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字: 核，从木亥声；现代字形拆分经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画数据核验（木4画 + 亥6画 = 10画）
Memory aid
A tree (木) keeps its seed locked inside the fruit; 亥 stands beside it as the last of the Earthly Branches — the hard core at the very end, the pit.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 核心hé xīncore; nucleus; heart (of a matter)核 = hé
- 核对hé duìto check; to verify against核 = hé
Go deeper
All readings
pit; core; nucleus
pit or stone of a fruit; core; nucleus; nuclear; to check or examine carefully
果实中心坚硬、包着种子的部分；也指物体的中心部分、原子核，引申为仔细对照、审查。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 核心hé xīncore; nucleus; heart (of a matter)核 = hé
- 核对hé duìto check; to verify against核 = hé
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 核 mean?
核 (hé) means pit or stone of a fruit; core; nucleus; nuclear; to check or examine carefully.
How do you pronounce 核?
It is pronounced hé.
What parts is 核 made of?
木 (tree; wood) and 亥 (the twelfth Earthly Branch), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字: 核，从木亥声；现代字形拆分经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画数据核验（木4画 + 亥6画 = 10画）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 核 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 核?
木. 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 核?
Common ones are 核心 and 核对. The reading of 核 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.