How to Write 杆 (gān/gǎn) — Meaning “Pole; staff”

Imagine a long wooden pole (木) standing upright, and on top of it there is a flag attached to a horizontal bar (干). The shape of 干 looks like a flagpole with a crossbar, and adding the wood radical reminds you that it is made of wood. This visual trick helps you link the character to its meaning of "pole" or "staff."

Pay attention to the stroke order: first write the left radical 木 (horizontal, vertical, left-falling, right-falling), then the right part 干 (two horizontal strokes from top to bottom, then a vertical stroke through the middle). A common mistake is making the vertical stroke of 木 too short or crooked, which makes the character look unbalanced. Keep both parts about the same height.

杆 (gān) contains the wood radical 木 on the left, while 未 (wèi, meaning "not yet") and 末 (mò, meaning "end" or "tip") do not have that radical. Visually, 未 has a slightly longer top horizontal stroke, and 末 has a longer bottom horizontal stroke, but both are one character unit. In contrast, 杆 is a left-right component structure with a clear "pole" meaning, so it looks wider and has an extra vertical line on the left.

You often see 杆 in common words like 电线杆 (diàn xiàn gān, utility pole) and 旗杆 (qí gān, flagpole). These are long, straight objects that hold wires or flags. In daily life, 枪杆 (qiāng gǎn, gun barrel or rifle stock) is also used, though the pronunciation changes to gǎn in that word. Culturally, 杆 is a practical character for describing infrastructure and tools.

Common words containing 杆 include: 电线杆 (diàn xiàn gān) — utility pole; 旗杆 (qí gān) — Flagpole.; 枪杆 (qiāng gǎn) — Gun barrel; rifle stock..