民 (mín) is a Chinese character meaning “the people”. It is written from ㇕ (horizontal-turning stroke) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇙ (vertical stroke that flicks up to the right at the bottom) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇂ (slanted hook stroke), and takes 5 strokes.
Build the character for “the people”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
㇕ + ㇐ + ㇙ + ㇐ + ㇂
Overlapping structure
- ㇕ horizontal-turning stroke unknown
- ㇐ horizontal stroke unknown
- ㇙ vertical stroke that flicks up to the right at the bottom unknown
- ㇐ horizontal stroke unknown
- ㇂ slanted hook stroke unknown
Structure from: Unicode U+6C11 与 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 现代字形观察（第 1 笔横折压住上框顶与右壁、第 2 笔短横封住小框底、第 3 笔竖提从左上一直落到底再向右上挑、第 4 笔长横横穿全字、第 5 笔斜钩自框内向右下拉出并上钩）
Memory aid
A folding stroke (㇕) caps a small box at the top, a short horizontal (㇐) closes its floor, and a long vertical-with-flick (㇙) runs all the way down the left. Then one long horizontal (㇐) cuts straight across and a sweeping hook (㇂) swings out to the lower right: a crowd standing under one roof, all leaning the same way — the people.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
5 strokes
In real words
- 人民rén mínthe people民 = mín
- 人民币rén mín bìrenminbi (RMB), the currency of China民 = mín
- 侨民qiáo mínexpatriate residents; nationals living abroad民 = mín
- 农民nóng mínfarmer; peasant民 = mín
- 庶民shù mínthe common people; ordinary citizens民 = mín
- 民族mín zúethnic group; nation民 = mín
- 渔民yú mínfisherman; fishing folk民 = mín
- 移民yí mínto emigrate; immigrant民 = mín
Go deeper
All readings
the people
the people; civilians; a member of a people or trade
百姓；人民。也指属于某个民族或从事某种职业的人。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 人民rén mínthe people民 = mín
- 人民币rén mín bìrenminbi (RMB), the currency of China民 = mín
- 侨民qiáo mínexpatriate residents; nationals living abroad民 = mín
- 农民nóng mínfarmer; peasant民 = mín
- 庶民shù mínthe common people; ordinary citizens民 = mín
- 民族mín zúethnic group; nation民 = mín
- 渔民yú mínfisherman; fishing folk民 = mín
- 移民yí mínto emigrate; immigrant民 = mín
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 民 mean?
民 (mín) means the people; civilians; a member of a people or trade.
How do you pronounce 民?
It is pronounced mín.
What parts is 民 made of?
㇕ (horizontal-turning stroke) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇙ (vertical stroke that flicks up to the right at the bottom) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇂ (slanted hook stroke). The recorded source is: Unicode U+6C11 与 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 现代字形观察（第 1 笔横折压住上框顶与右壁、第 2 笔短横封住小框底、第 3 笔竖提从左上一直落到底再向右上挑、第 4 笔长横横穿全字、第 5 笔斜钩自框内向右下拉出并上钩）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 民 have?
5. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 民?
氏. 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 民?
Common ones are 人民 and 人民币. The reading of 民 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.