How to Write 叉 (chā) — Meaning “Fork; cross; X-mark.”

Imagine a fork from above: the dot is the handle you hold, and the two crossing lines are the prongs. This visual connects the character's shape directly to its meaning of 'fork'.

Write the strokes in order: first the left-falling stroke (丿), then the right-falling stroke (㇏), and finally the small dot (丶) above the crossing. A common mistake is placing the dot too low or making the two diagonal lines cross at the very end instead of in the middle.

叉 has a clear X shape with a dot on top, while 又 (yòu, 'again') looks like a curved hand shape with no cross. 及 (jí, 'and') has an extra curved stroke on the left, making it look more like a hook; its meaning and usage are also different from 叉.

叉 is used in words like 叉子 (chā zi, fork) and 交叉 (jiāo chā, to cross or intersect). In everyday life, a (叉) mark often means 'wrong' or 'incorrect', similar to an X in English.

Common words containing 叉 include: 叉子 (chā zi) — Fork.; 交叉 (jiāo chā) — to cross; to intersect; overlap; 鱼叉 (yú chā) — Fishing spear (harpoon).