脂 (zhī) is a Chinese character meaning “fat”. It is written from 月 (moon; month) and 旨 (intent; purpose (also a sound component reading zhǐ)), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “fat; grease”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
月 + 旨
Left–right structure
Structure from: 《说文解字》：脂，戴角者脂，無角者膏。从肉旨聲；现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 核验：10 画 = 左「月」4 画 + 右「旨」6 画（左旁「月」为肉的偏旁形）
Memory aid
The flesh-side 月 says this belongs to the body, and 旨 (zhǐ) carries the sound — 脂, zhī, the grease and fat in meat.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 脂肪zhī fángfat (body fat; dietary fat)脂 = zhī
- 油脂yóu zhīoils and fats; grease脂 = zhī
- 琼脂qióng zhīagar (gelatin from seaweed)脂 = zhī
Go deeper
All readings
fat; grease
fat; grease; oily substance from animals or plants; also rouge (as in 胭脂)
动植物所含的油质；也指胭脂一类的化妆品。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 脂肪zhī fángfat (body fat; dietary fat)脂 = zhī
- 油脂yóu zhīoils and fats; grease脂 = zhī
- 琼脂qióng zhīagar (gelatin from seaweed)脂 = zhī
Sound component
旨 family tone diff
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 脂 mean?
脂 (zhī) means fat; grease; oily substance from animals or plants; also rouge (as in 胭脂).
How do you pronounce 脂?
It is pronounced zhī.
What parts is 脂 made of?
月 (moon; month) and 旨 (intent; purpose (also a sound component reading zhǐ)), side by side. The recorded source is: 《说文解字》：脂，戴角者脂，無角者膏。从肉旨聲；现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 核验：10 画 = 左「月」4 画 + 右「旨」6 画（左旁「月」为肉的偏旁形）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 脂 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 脂?
肉. 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 脂?
Common ones are 脂肪 and 油脂. The reading of 脂 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.