走 (zǒu) is a Chinese character meaning “to walk”. It is written from 土 (earth; soil) and 龰 (bottom component of 走; four-stroke base ending in a long right sweep), one above the other, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “to walk”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
土 + 龰
Top–bottom structure
- 土 earth; soil · tǔ unknown
- 龰 bottom component of 走; four-stroke base ending in a long right sweep unknown
Structure from: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（现代字形拆分：第 1–3 笔为上部「土」，第 4–7 笔为下部「龰」）
Memory aid
Solid ground (土) rests on top of 龰, the four-stroke base that spreads out below it like a foot in mid-stride. Ground above, foot below — you walk (走).
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 走路zǒu lùto walk; to go on foot走 = zǒu
- 走开zǒu kāito go away; to get out of the way走 = zǒu
- 叼走diāo zǒuto carry off in the mouth走 = zǒu
- 走吧zǒu balet's go走 = zǒuHSK 1
- 拿走ná zǒuto take away走 = zǒu
- 走廊zǒu lángcorridor; hallway走 = zǒu
- 逃走táo zǒuto flee; to run away; to escape走 = zǒu
Go deeper
All readings
to walk
to walk; to go; to leave; to move along
行走；离开；移动。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 走路zǒu lùto walk; to go on foot走 = zǒu
- 走开zǒu kāito go away; to get out of the way走 = zǒu
- 叼走diāo zǒuto carry off in the mouth走 = zǒu
- 走吧zǒu balet's go走 = zǒuHSK 1
- 拿走ná zǒuto take away走 = zǒu
- 走廊zǒu lángcorridor; hallway走 = zǒu
- 逃走táo zǒuto flee; to run away; to escape走 = zǒu
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 走 mean?
走 (zǒu) means to walk; to go; to leave; to move along.
How do you pronounce 走?
It is pronounced zǒu.
What parts is 走 made of?
土 (earth; soil) and 龰 (bottom component of 走; four-stroke base ending in a long right sweep), one above the other. The recorded source is: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（现代字形拆分：第 1–3 笔为上部「土」，第 4–7 笔为下部「龰」）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 走 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 走?
走. 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 走?
Common ones are 走路, 走开, 叼走. The reading of 走 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.