How to Write 将 (jiāng/jiàng) — Meaning “Will; shall; general (military)”

Imagine a general standing on a wooden platform (丬) at sunset (夕) to plan the future battle — this combines the meanings "general" and "will" (future). The dot above 夕 can be seen as a flag or a command signal. This visual helps you recall both readings: jiāng (will) and jiàng (general).

Start with the top-left dot, then the short horizontal, followed by the vertical stroke through the center of 丬. Next write the right side: first the left-falling stroke (丿), then the horizontal hook (㇆), then the inner dot, and finally the right-falling stroke (捺). A common mistake is making the right side too wide; keep it narrow and balanced so the character fits in a square.

将来 (jiāng lái) means "future" and is used in everyday conversation, like 将来你想做什么? (What do you want to do in the future?). 将军 (jiāng jūn) means "general" in a military rank, appearing in history books or news about armies. 将领 (jiàng lǐng) refers to high-ranking military officers in formal or narrative contexts.

将 is extremely common as an auxiliary verb meaning "will" or "going to" in formal or written Chinese, for example 我将去北京 (I will go to Beijing). When pronounced jiàng, it means "general" and appears in historical titles like 名将 (famous general) or in idioms like 将计就计 (to use an opponent's plan against them). Note that in spoken Mandarin, people often use 要 (yào) instead of 将 for "will," making 将 more literary and formal.

Common words containing 将 include: 将来 (jiāng lái) — Future; 将军 (jiāng jūn) — General (military rank); 将领 (jiàng lǐng) — General / High-ranking military officer..