设 (shè) is a Chinese character meaning “to set up”. It is written from 讠 (speech radical) and 殳 (a hand holding a long-handled tool or weapon), side by side, and takes 6 strokes.
Build the character for “to set up; to establish”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
讠 + 殳
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分（讠2画 + 殳4画 = 6画，对照 hanzi-writer-data 核验）；说文解字·言部「設，施陳也。从言从殳」
Memory aid
Speech (讠) on the left, a hand holding a tool (殳) on the right: you say what you want, then the hand sets it up.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
6 strokes
In real words
- 设计shè jìto design; design设 = shè
- 建设jiàn shèto build; construction设 = shè
- 设备shè bèiequipment; facilities设 = shèHSK 4
Go deeper
All readings
to set up
to set up; to establish; to arrange; to plan out
布置、安排；建立起来。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 设计shè jìto design; design设 = shè
- 建设jiàn shèto build; construction设 = shè
- 设备shè bèiequipment; facilities设 = shèHSK 4
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 设 mean?
设 (shè) means to set up; to establish; to arrange; to plan out.
How do you pronounce 设?
It is pronounced shè.
What parts is 设 made of?
讠 (speech radical) and 殳 (a hand holding a long-handled tool or weapon), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分（讠2画 + 殳4画 = 6画，对照 hanzi-writer-data 核验）；说文解字·言部「設，施陳也。从言从殳」. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 设 have?
6. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 设?
讠. 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 设?
Common ones are 设计 and 建设. The reading of 设 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.