How to Write 久 (jiǔ) — Meaning “A long time.”

Imagine a person bending over for a long time to pick up a heavy bag. The first stroke (丿) is the person’s head, and the hook and last stroke form the bag and the person’s back. This image of bending for a long time reminds you of the meaning “a long time.”

Start with a short left-falling stroke. Next, write a horizontal hook that curves upward a little. Finish with a right-falling stroke that extends below the hook. A common mistake is making the hook too long or the last stroke too short, which ruins the balance.

久 has three strokes and means “a long time,” while 丹 has four strokes (including a dot) and means “cinnabar” or “red.” The character 丿 is just a single stroke used as a radical, not a full character. Visually, 久 is more narrow and has no dot inside, unlike 丹.

久 appears in common phrases like 好久不见 (hǎo jiǔ bú jiàn, “long time no see”) and 多久 (duō jiǔ, “how long”). It is often used with 很 (hěn) to say “a very long time” in everyday conversation, and it carries a warm feeling when greeting someone after a long absence.

Common words containing 久 include: 好久 (hǎo jiǔ) — a long time; 多久 (duō jiǔ) — How long.; 很久 (hěn jiǔ) — a long time.