秋 (qiū) is a Chinese character meaning “autumn”. It is written from 禾 (grain; standing grain) and 火 (fire), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “autumn”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
禾 + 火
Left–right structure
Structure from: studyhanzi 构形核验（现代字形，对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔顺分组：前 5 笔为禾，后 4 笔为火）
Memory aid
Grain (禾) standing next to fire (火): the crop is cut and the stubble burns off — that is autumn.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 秋天qiū tiānautumn; fall秋 = qiū
- 秋季qiū jìthe autumn season秋 = qiū
Go deeper
All readings
autumn
autumn; fall; harvest time; a year
一年四季中的第三季，庄稼成熟收获的季节。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 秋天qiū tiānautumn; fall秋 = qiū
- 秋季qiū jìthe autumn season秋 = qiū
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 秋 mean?
秋 (qiū) means autumn; fall; harvest time; a year.
How do you pronounce 秋?
It is pronounced qiū.
What parts is 秋 made of?
禾 (grain; standing grain) and 火 (fire), side by side. The recorded source is: studyhanzi 构形核验（现代字形，对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔顺分组：前 5 笔为禾，后 4 笔为火）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 秋 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 秋?
禾. 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 秋?
Common ones are 秋天 and 秋季. The reading of 秋 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.