森 (sēn) is a Chinese character meaning “forest”. It is written from 木 (tree; wood) and 林 (woods; grove (two trees side by side)), one above the other, and takes 12 strokes.
Build the character for “forest”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
木 + 林
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 说文解字·林部：森，木多皃。从林从木。构形经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：12 笔，上「木」0–3，下「林」4–11
Memory aid
One tree (木) standing on top of a grove (林): stack up enough trees and you have a forest.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
12 strokes
In real words
- 森林sēn línforest森 = sēn
- 阴森yīn sēngloomy; eerie; dark and forbidding森 = sēn
Go deeper
All readings
forest; dense trees
forest; full of trees; dense; dark and gloomy; strict
树木多而密；也形容繁多、阴暗或严肃。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 森林sēn línforest森 = sēn
- 阴森yīn sēngloomy; eerie; dark and forbidding森 = sēn
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 森 mean?
森 (sēn) means forest; full of trees; dense; dark and gloomy; strict.
How do you pronounce 森?
It is pronounced sēn.
What parts is 森 made of?
木 (tree; wood) and 林 (woods; grove (two trees side by side)), one above the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字·林部：森，木多皃。从林从木。构形经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：12 笔，上「木」0–3，下「林」4–11. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 森 have?
12. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 森?
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 森?
Common ones are 森林 and 阴森. The reading of 森 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.