齿 (chǐ) is a Chinese character meaning “tooth”. It is written from 止 (stop) and 凵 (open box) and 人 (person), one above the other, and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “tooth”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
止 + 凵 + 人
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 说文解字（齒：象口齒之形，止聲）+ hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（止 0–3、人 4–5、凵 6–7）
Memory aid
止 sits on top, and under it a person (人) stands inside an open box (凵) — an open mouth. Bite down and everything that goes in stops right there: teeth.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 牙齿yá chǐteeth齿 = chǐ
- 齿轮chǐ lúngear; cogwheel齿 = chǐ
Go deeper
All readings
tooth
tooth; teeth; a tooth-like part, as on a gear, comb or saw
人和动物口腔里用来咀嚼食物的骨质器官；也指物体上像牙齿一样排列的部分。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 牙齿yá chǐteeth齿 = chǐ
- 齿轮chǐ lúngear; cogwheel齿 = chǐ
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 齿 mean?
齿 (chǐ) means tooth; teeth; a tooth-like part, as on a gear, comb or saw.
How do you pronounce 齿?
It is pronounced chǐ.
What parts is 齿 made of?
止 (stop) and 凵 (open box) and 人 (person), one above the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字（齒：象口齒之形，止聲）+ hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（止 0–3、人 4–5、凵 6–7）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 齿 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 齿?
齿. 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 齿?
Common ones are 牙齿 and 齿轮. The reading of 齿 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.