Hanzi Writer

How to Write 看 (kān/kàn) — Meaning “to look; to see; to watch; to read”

kān/kàn HSK Level 1 9 strokes Radical: 目

看 (kān/kàn) means "to look; to see; to watch; to read" in Chinese. It has 9 strokes with the radical 目, and is HSK Level 1.

Rated 3.5/5 in difficulty (challenging).

Harder than 81% of HSK Level 1 characters.

Appears in 4+ common words including 看见 (kàn jiàn), 观看 (guān kàn), 看管 (kān guǎn).

Due to its 9 strokes, Hanzi Writer's error detection shows 看 requires focused practice — most learners need 10+ attempts for consistent accuracy.

Stroke order practice for 看 - kān/kàn

Practice Writing 看 (kān/kàn)

Open Hanzi Writer to see the animated stroke order and practice writing 看 with real-time feedback.

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How to Write 看

The character 看 (kān/kàn) is written with 9 strokes. Follow the standard Chinese stroke order: top to bottom, left to right, outside before inside. The radical 目 is one of its key components.

Practice the correct stroke order with the Hanzi Writer app to see animated stroke-by-stroke guidance with real-time feedback.

What Does kān/kàn (看) Mean in Chinese?

看 means to look; to see; to watch; to read.

This is a polyphonic character with readings: kān, kàn.

As an HSK Level 1 character, 看 is among the first characters beginners learn.

Character Data

Character看
Pinyinkān / kàn (kan)
Meaningto look; to see; to watch; to read
Strokes9
Radical目
HSK Level1
Difficulty3.5/5

Origin of 看

看 is a compound of a hand (手, simplified to 𠂉) over an eye (目), depicting a hand shading the eyes to see better. The ancient form already showed this hand-over-eye gesture to indicate looking or watching intently.

💡 Memory Tip: Picture a hand (𠂉) shielding your eyes (目) like a visor so you can 'see' far away.

Common Words with 看

看见 kàn jiàn
to see
观看 guān kàn
To watch; to view
看管 kān guǎn
guard / watch over
看守 kān shǒu
to guard; to watch over

Example Sentences

我刚才看见他走进了图书馆。

wǒ gāng cái kàn jiàn tā zǒu jìn le tú shū guǎn

I just saw him walk into the library.

成千上万的观众在看台观看比赛。

chéng qiān shàng wàn de guān zhòng zài kàn tái guān kàn bǐ sài

Thousands upon thousands of spectators are watching the game from the stands.

仓库需要专人看管以确保物资安全。

cāng kù xū yào zhuān rén kān guǎn yǐ què bǎo wù zī ān quán

The warehouse needs a dedicated person to look after it to ensure the safety of materials.

守门员死死地看守着球门。

shǒu mén yuán sǐ sǐ dì kān shǒu zhe qiú mén

The goalkeeper is guarding the goal very closely.

Similar Characters Comparison

Character Pinyin Strokes Radical
看 (current) kān / kàn 9 目
盯 dīng 7 目
盱 xū 8 目
盲 máng 8 目
Stroke order practice for 看 - kān/kàn

Practice Writing 看 (kān/kàn)

Open Hanzi Writer to see the animated stroke order and practice writing 看 with real-time feedback.

✨ Animated stroke order · Handwriting recognition · HSK-graded practice · Free to use

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Frequently Asked Questions about 看

看 is made of two parts: a hand (手, with a modified shape) on top and an eye (目) on the bottom. The hand over the eye suggests the action of shading your eyes to look into the distance, which links to the meanings of 'to see' and 'to watch'.

More HSK Level 1 Characters

爱ài好hǎo/hào八bā爸bà吧ba/bā白bái天tiān百bǎi班bān半bàn年nián帮bāng忙máng包bāo子zi/zǐ杯bēi北běi边biān京jīng本běn

Characters with Radical 目

目mù盯dīng盱xū盲máng直zhí相xiāng/xiàng盹dǔn盼pàn盾dùn省shěng/xǐng

Other 9-Stroke Characters

㒸suì㲋chuò㿽xī临lín举jǔ乹gān/qián亭tíng亮liàng亲qīn/qìng侮wǔ