殉 (xùn) is a Chinese character meaning “to give one's life for a cause or duty”. It is written from 歹 (bad; evil) and 旬 (a period of ten days), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “to die for (a cause)”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
歹 + 旬
Left–right structure
Structure from: 广韵·稕韵：殉，辞闰切；声符旬（详遵切）同属邪母；构形 IDS ⿰歹旬
Memory aid
The death part (歹) beside 旬, a ten-day span: someone gives up their life for a cause, and people mourn them for ten days. 旬 also gives the sound: xún → xùn.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 殉职xùn zhíto die in the line of duty殉 = xùn
- 殉难xùn nànto die for a just cause; to be killed in a disaster殉 = xùn
Go deeper
All readings
to die for (a cause)
to give one's life for a cause or duty; (in ancient times) to be buried with the dead
为某种目的或理想而牺牲生命；古代也指用人或物陪葬。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 殉职xùn zhíto die in the line of duty殉 = xùn
- 殉难xùn nànto die for a just cause; to be killed in a disaster殉 = xùn
Sound component
旬 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 殉 mean?
殉 (xùn) means to give one's life for a cause or duty; (in ancient times) to be buried with the dead.
How do you pronounce 殉?
It is pronounced xùn.
What parts is 殉 made of?
歹 (bad; evil) and 旬 (a period of ten days), side by side. The recorded source is: 广韵·稕韵：殉，辞闰切；声符旬（详遵切）同属邪母；构形 IDS ⿰歹旬. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 殉 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 殉?
歹. 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 殉?
Common ones are 殉职 and 殉难. The reading of 殉 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.